​To All Schools,

“I Love to Read Month” is a month long celebration that is held each year to encourage reading, writing, and sharing in the joy of literacy. This year’s theme is “Our Voices are Unique”. This theme is meant to help readers recognize the importance of being their true selves and sharing their stories. We can develop a deeper understanding of different perspectives by sharing our own stories and by listening to others’ stories.

On behalf of the Reading Council of Greater Winnipeg (RCGW), I have prepared the attached idea calendar. The RCGW is a group of dedicated educators who meet monthly to share and work to promote knowledge and awareness of lifelong literacy and learning. Please share the idea calendar with teachers, students and their families. It would make a great addition to your school newsletter. Activities are included for students of all ages to have them explore different ways of engaging with literacy. I hope that both teachers and students will have fun with the suggested activities and that they will challenge the students to learn something new. I also hope that families will be able to share the excitement of reading and writing together.

​In addition to the idea calendar, the RCGW will be making a book and monetary donation to the Cancer Care Unit at the Children’s Hospital, so that the staff can continue to update their children’s and teen’s libraries and magazine subscriptions. This provides children, teens, as well as parents with reading materials that are appealing and entertaining, as well as supportive.

​The RCGW thanks you for sharing this idea calendar with teachers and families. By doing so, you are helping to empower our students to change the world.

Sincerely,
​
Brittany Bell
Representative of the I Love to Read Committee
Reading Council of Greater Winnipeg

RCGW’s president Dr. Bev Zakaluk established the province’s first I Love to Read Day in February 1980. In 1984, the Honourable Pearl McGonigal, Manitoba’s first female lieutenant governor, invited Grade 3 students from Birds’ Hill School to share stories and enjoy refreshments in the Manitoba Legislative Building’s Blue Room. The Lieutenant Governor presented them with a book bound in red velvet containing stories the students had written. “I will never forget that day we spent with Her Honour,” one student shared. “I think she liked us as much as we liked her!”

The mid-80s saw RCGW join forces with the Winnipeg Public Library and Manitoba School Library and Audio-Visual Association (now the Manitoba School Library Association) to host exciting community events at the Eaton Place Mall and Centennial Library. The collaborative events, held yearly between 1987 and 1989, were opened by local dignitaries and welcomed hundreds of children, parents, teachers and librarians who participated in reading activities and enjoyed the wonderful entertainment.

The vibrant energy of I Love to Read Month continued to rise in the early 90s. RCGW published its first I Love to Read Month Idea Calendar to coincide with the International Year of Literacy in 1990. RCGW also hosted Manitoba’s Biggest Read-In at The Forks, where 300 students participated in person and over 10,000 students participated in their own communities. In 1991, Polo Park Mall hosted a very festive I Love to Read Day. The entire shopping centre was decorated, with over 1,400 children and their family members taking part in the celebration’s many activities and workshops. 

The Province of Manitoba has recognized or proclaimed February as I Love to Read Month for many years. In 1997, the Honourable Premier Gary Filmon launched the Premier’s Reading Recognition Certificate, encouraging children in Grades 2 and 3 to set a goal to increase how much they would read. Many education ministers have since taken time in February to acknowledge the importance of literacy and highlight special events.

Dear RCGW Members,

“I Love to Read Month” is a month-long celebration that is held each year in February to encourage reading, writing, and sharing in the joy of literacy. This year’s theme is “Moving Forward with Hope.” This theme is meant to help readers understand different perspectives, develop compassion and move through these challenging times with empathy. As the world around us begins to recover, we too, need to move forward with renewed optimism as we forge a path of healing and reconciliation.

On behalf of the Reading Council of Greater Winnipeg, I have prepared the idea calendar below. The RCGW is a group of dedicated educators who meet monthly to share and work to promote knowledge and awareness of lifelong literacy and learning. Please share the idea calendar with teachers, students and their families. It would make a great addition to your school newsletter. Activities are included for students of all ages to have them explore different ways of engaging with literacy. I hope that both teachers and students will have fun with the suggested activities and that they will challenge the students to learn something new. I also hope that families will be able to share the excitement of reading and writing together.

In addition to the idea calendar, the RCGW will be making a book and monetary donation to the Cancer Care Unit at the Children’s Hospital so that the staff can continue to update their children’s and teens’ libraries and magazine subscriptions. This provides children, teens, as well as parents with reading materials that are appealing and entertaining, as well as supportive.

The RCGW thanks you for sharing this idea calendar with teachers and families. In doing this, you are helping to empower our students to change the world.

Brittany Bell
I Love to Read Committee Chair
Reading Council of Greater Winnipeg