Education. One hundred and ten educators nominated 'Reading Ambassadors'
Friday 18 October, in Milan, the international conference at the end of the European project "Open the door to reading"
Milan, October 16 2019 – There are 110 educators from the nursery schools of the Municipality of Milan, coming from 52 educational units, appointed 'Reading Ambassadors' at the end of the training provided for by the international project “Open the door to reading” – promoted by the European Commission as part of the Erasmus Plus program and totally financed by the European Union with 129 thousand euros -, which the Municipality has joined in partnership with Gothenburg (leader), Brussels, Bristol and Turku.
Through the local actions of the European project, the Municipality of Milan has connected educators, librarians and health workers with the aim of strengthening the skills of educators with respect to strategies to promote reading with families, in particular with the most vulnerable ones, to qualitative choices (how to choose the right books, how to stay updated on editorial news), to cataloging and involving the most difficult children. In particular, the educators who participated in the course will now become promoters of the skills acquired, keeping active both the projects within their own educational units and the relationships with the libraries of their reference areas.
“Promoting reading from early childhood is an important action that requires a multi-professional approach – comments Education Councilor Laura Galimberti –, made up of alliances between public and private entities that are capable of supporting both economically and from a from the point of view of structured projects skills. Projects that can accompany not only children, but also their families, in their growth journey."
The final event of the “Open the door to reading” project will be held in Milan, on Friday 18 October, starting at 9.30 am, in the Catella Foundation (via Gaetano de Castillia 28). The meeting will be opened by Education Councilor Laura Galimberti; the morning will then continue with a series of debates dedicated to the Milan Reading Pact, the importance of collaboration between public and private to promote reading from early childhood and strategies and resources to combat educational poverty.
In the afternoon, 30 experts from the different cities that participated in the project will hold 4 workshops:
- Brussels: “How to support families that are not used to reading in reading promotion”;
- Turku: “Learning social-emotional skills and language through reading”;
- Bristol: “Challenging social inequality through the power of the picture book”;
- Göteborg: “How to co-design activities for children and families (a family-centered approach)”.
In almost all of the 104 nursery schools and 172 nursery schools in the Municipality of Milan, which welcome over 30.000 children between 3 and 6 years old, reading activities are carried out as a daily educational practice and, in almost all the structures, internal libraries are set up municipalities or sections. Furthermore, in the coming months, the libraries of around 40 children's services will be strengthened, through the administration's extra supply of ad hoc furniture to create reading corners suitable for children, but also for adults.
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Updated: 18/10/2019