Literacy covers a wide range of activities and that is what is occurring around the District. Most Clubs are active on a local level and some have Rotary Australia World Community Service (RAWCS) programmes operating that also cover literacy.

Locally, Clubs are providing funds for books and dictionaries in their area schools, libraries, and (in order to reach the very young) the Infant Welfare Centres. Many Clubs also participate in the Early Literacy is Fun Programme run by Berry Street.

The District is also offering encouragement to gifted students to expand their capabilities with the Ian Murphy Debating Competition and the River of Stories Essay Competition. Debating is based around public speaking but in the process of developing logical arguments, learning to think quickly and to express themselves clearly, students find that their literacy skills have increased proportionately.

The River of Stories Essay Competition is a project of the Rotary Club of Albury Hume, managed by Barry Young. It is partly sponsored by the Albury Shire Council and has 16 local schools participating. The District is keen to expand this competition into other areas and it could be something your Club might consider.

Internationally, the Rotary Club of Benalla is preparing to make another trip to Vanuatu where they have been working to improve literacy at the Port Vila Central School which also services surrounding districts.

Ruth Konig from the Rotary Club of Yea has recently returned from South Africa where she was working on the project that the Club and the local primary school have undertaken at the Day Spring Children's School. Ruth will be returning in 2012 where she will be expanding the Accelerated Christian Education Programme and the literacy syllabus. ACE is a self-paced programme to improve literacy in English. Ruth would be happy to speak to any club that might be interested in supporting the programme.

There are many ways Clubs can support literacy but please do your homework and provide what is needed, not what you think might be a good idea.

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