UIndy’s First Community Literacy Day Celebrates the Joy of Reading

Books often get overlooked.  Many children grow up thinking reading is just a classroom activity while stories sit collecting dust on home shelves. Yet, reading a book can be a window to another world. 

“Literacy is a joyful act,” said Dr. Tracy Johnson, assistant professor at the University of Indianapolis for the School of Education. “We need to celebrate that so kids want to engage in it.”

UIndy’s first Community Literacy Day not only made reading exciting — it showed aspiring writers they have a place to thrive.

“I wanted them to see UIndy as a place to collaborate and a part of the community,” said Johnson. “We can all create joy within this realm of literacy and learning.”

Living out the theme “One Community, Many Voices,” a variety of campus and community partners hosted literacy-centered events throughout the day. 

• The Department of Biology brought books about snails, millipedes and isopods — and also actual creatures
• The Department of Art and Design led a comic strip-making station
• The Center for Aging and Community offered a Memory Lane station, which included old-school games like hopscotch and jacks 
• WFYI-FM set up a sound booth for kids to participate in community storytelling 
• Creative Grounds Fine Arts Academy performed a portion of their production of Disney’s Alice in Wonderland
• Multilingual teachers from Clark Pleasant Middle School hosted read-alouds in languages other than English, celebrating the diverse voices within the community

“We’re trying to bring in as many representations of people in our community as possible,” said Johnson. “Representation is always important in all layers.”

Indianapolis was well represented at Community Literacy Day, as families had the opportunity to meet and interact with Deborah Asante, an award-winning performance storyteller with Arts for Learning Indiana, as well as best-selling author and Indianapolis native John David Anderson.

Anderson, the critically acclaimed author of several novels for young readers, including “Posted,” “Granted,” “Ms. Bixby’s Last Day,” and “Finding Orion,” also helped present certificates to students from Decatur Middle School, who showcased original Greek mythology stories they had written.

“Events like this are important because they celebrate the power of writing, reading, and creativity,” said Anderson. “Young people especially need to exercise those imaginative muscles, so they can turn around and use them to share their stories, better the community, and empower others.”

Anderson, known for blending humor and depth, also added, “Plus, we will need the next generation of bright young minds to fend off the robots.”

Attendees also interacted with Deedee Cummings, therapist and author, who incorporates therapeutic techniques into her stories to teach children coping skills.  

Access to books can be difficult for certain families, so with the help of the Indy Book Project, every child who attended Community Literacy Day went home with a free book.

“If we’re going to have a day celebrating literacy, how do we not get books in kids’ hands?” said Johnson. “The way you get better at reading is by reading.”

In addition to a free book, families also took home an important lesson: Literacy should be celebrated and at UIndy, we can create a better world together.