News
Tuesday 21 February 2012
National Year of Reading includes the needs of everyone
This year is the National Year of Reading and the campaign to encourage more Australians to read, is currently underway after launches and announcements all across the country last week.
Disability Discrimination Commissioner Graeme Innes was at the official launch at the National Library in Canberra, where he presented a braille version of the children’s book ‘Are We There Yet’ to Prime Minister Julia Gillard.
“It is important that people who are blind, have low vision or other vision disabilities are able to access their chosen reading materials in formats that they require, that’s why this presentation of ‘Are We There Yet’ is a positive step towards an inclusive society,” said Commissioner Innes.
The alternate format of the children’s book by award-winning author illustrator Alison Lester which was produced by Vision Australia, includes braille as well as tactile illustrations so children who are blind or have low vision can ‘feel’ the words and pictures.
Commissioner Innes said “reading is vital to accessing education and employment and participating productively in society. Sharing books with children early in life, greatly improves their chances of developing good literacy skills.”
‘Are We There Yet’ will be available from Vision Australia’s Library in braille and audio format. The book will also be part of a touring exhibition that will visit every state and territory in Australia.
The 2012 National Year of Reading campaign is designed to highlight the benefits of reading as a life skill and aims to establish the idea that everyone will benefit from reading for at least an hour a week.
The joys of reading will be actively promoted throughout the country with a program of community events that includes visiting authors and illustrators, special storytime sessions, early literacy programs, activities for families and creative writing workshops.
The Reading Hour designated for Saturday 25 August 2012 will be the campaign’s central call to action.
More information on the National Year of Reading is available at this link
www.love2read.org.au
