Stand Up for Girls on 10.11.13

523 million girls cannot read or write. Join LitWorld's Stand Up for Girls Campaign to take urgent action. Stand up for the woman or girl who inspires you. Here's how:

1. Make a contribution in her honor. Your donation will spread LitClubs around the world, giving girls everywhere a safe space to come together to tell powerful stories. 

2. Put her story on record. Visit http://litworld.org/storybank/ to honor a story.

3. Take a photo with the Stand Up for Girls sign and use it as your profile picture on social media.

4. Spread the word and enlist your friends in the Stand Up for Girls movement. Share your actions on
social media using the hashtag #standup4girls.

5. Stand up at noon on October 11. As you rise, think about the stories that could and should be told in a world that listens for the voices of girls.

American University Names LitWorld as one of Top Ten Innovative NGOs in Education

"Education is one of the most powerful weapons in fighting poverty. However, countries lacking substantial educational infrastructure can face a number of unique problems: rural access, gender inequalities, child labor, and more. These problems required equally unconventional solutions–here’s how ten NGOs are working to solve the education gap."

We are honored to be listed as one of American University's Ten Innovative NGOs in Education. LitWorld is featured alongside nine other organizations that are doing amazing work on-the-ground every day. LitWorld's models are mobile, portable and democratic ways to create a robust reading and writing culture using the power of story.

Click here to read the full list. 

From Detroit To Manila, Literacy Is A Life Raft To Independence: A Profile of Pam Allyn and LitWorld on Forbes

LitWorld's Founder and Executive Director, Pam Allyn, was interviewed by Forbes as part of a series that amplifies the emerging voices of girls and women who are trying to fix the world's problems by disrupting the status quo with positive actions.

"Humankind’s greatest innovation is the power of story. Stories are mobile, portable and democratic and have the power to transform, uplift and delight. When all girls have the opportunity to learn to read and write and to share their stories, they become active creators of their own lives and mobilized to create monumental change in our world." --Pam Allyn

Click here to read the full piece.

The LitCamp Program Launches in Haiti

We are overjoyed to announce that LitWorld, along with our extraordinary partners, Foundation TOYA and The Children of Haiti Project, has launched the LitCamp program at our Innovation Hub in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. 

It is momentous to watch the young women of Foundation TOYA lead LitCamp activities with confidence, to come together in community to read aloud together, to learn new songs in Haitian Creole, and to watch each child so eager to write and tell her stories. 

For daily updates read the LitCorps Travel and Tips Blog, and follow LitWorld on Twitter and "like" our Facebook page for photos from the field.

Pam Allyn's Latest HuffPost Blog - Voices and Choices: The Secrets to Summer Reading and Writing Success

 

In her latest blog for HuffPost Parents, LitWorld's Founder and Executive Director, Pam Allyn, explains how to use children's own stories to build a joyful and engaging summer learning life.

"Reading is like breathing in and writing is like breathing out, and storytelling is what links both: it is the soul of literacy. The most powerful tool that we have to strengthen literacy is often the most underused and overlooked, and that is a child's own stories. This is something that every child has regardless of their socioeconomic background."

Click here to read the full piece.

Scholastic Literacy Champion Spotlight Features LitWorld LitCamps

We are honored and deeply grateful to share the latest Scholastic Literacy Champion Spotlight featuring LitWorld's LitCamp program. Click here to read the full story on the Scholastic website.

"As more and more kids poured out of the vans that arrived on the first morning of the LitCamp, one boy in the crowd stood out. He sat apart from everyone, the only child without a bright blue T-shirt or a nametag. Instead of holding a book or a ball in his hands, he stood with over 15 hand woven placemats he needed to sell to support his family.

Like many of our campers, the boy, who introduced himself as Ronald, was recently relocated to the rural area outside of metro Manila from the slum in which he was born. Like many of our campers, Ronald was too young to work but working anyway. Like many of our campers, Ronald’s everyday life did not leave enough space for joy."

Continue reading on scholastic.com.

Pam Allyn Shares the LitCamp Model on NBC New York

In an interview with NBC News 4 New York, LitWorld Founder, Pam Allyn, shared the innovative LitCamp model and explained how LitWorld creates joyful reading communities to combat summer learning loss. We were thrilled to see the faces of our LitClub and LitCamp children from around the world featured prominently during this segment, and delighted to see our untraditional model for literacy learning growing, spreading and transforming the world of education.