For more information, call Vickie at 413-863-4805, ext. 3.

Connecting Through Literacy is a volunteer program for families with children under the age of five in which a qualified home visitor works with both parent and child to develop crucial literacy skills. Vickie meets with each participating family once a week for one hour bringing books and other learning materials with her on her visits.

Here, Vickie reads to Autumn and Jazilyn and models reading to children for lifelong skills.

"The overall goal of the CTL program is developing a relationship with families at risk for “intergenerational transmission” of low literacy and poverty.  Listening to the needs of parents and children and gently suggesting ideas intended to improve the quality of their lives requires enormous trust.  Our ability to share our thoughts and experiences and the ability to communicate with one another, is the relationship we are developing.

Communication is more than the ability to speak the same language—ask any mother caring for her infant, or any person that loves and cares for an animal.  When a can of Coke is wiped with the edge of a shirt and then passed across the table along with a wrapped fortune cookie…something is being communicated, someone is speaking, and someone is being welcomed." —  MCSM Spring 2009 Newsletter

OTHER RESOURCES:

Parents Helping Parents serves Massachusetts parents and caregivers with children 18 and under through STATEWIDE PARENT SUPPORT GROUPS and a 24 HOUR PARENTAL STRESS LINE 1-800-632-8188. Parents support their children. We support parents.

(2010)

Maeve Shaunnausey Donations

Thanks to Maeve, a student at Holyoke Catholic and friend of Our Lady of Peace Parish and MCSM, we received over 300 books for children of all ages.  Many of these books were compiled into Christmas Reading Gifts.

MCSM participated in the national Read For The Record Campaign on October 7, 2010.

A donation from Channing-Bete Co. made it possible for MCSM to offer each child a copy of “The Snowy Day", as part of the Jumpstart…Read-for-the-Record event. According to wegivebooks.org, this year’s campaign was record-setting - "On October 7, 2010, a total of 2,057,513 adults and children across the globe helped to set a new world record once again by coming together to read the official book of Jumpstart’s Read for the Record 2010 Campaign – The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats.

In the process, we helped to raise awareness of our essential obligation to ensure that young people everywhere have an equal chance to begin school with the literacy skills they need to succeed. With your help, we also drew attention to the essential work that Jumpstart does in preschool classrooms year round."