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Celebrating 100 editions of the Nal’ibali supplement

This month, the Nal’ibali reading-for-enjoyment campaign celebrates the 100th edition of its popular literacy supplement produced in partnership with Times Media. As the only bilingual resource of its kind in South Africa, it bridges home, community and school to promote and enable reading for joy and personal satisfaction among children and their parents or caregivers in African languages and English.
Available in five different language combinations,…

The power of translation

Kholeka Sigenu is an award-winning author from the Eastern Cape. A former teacher and storyteller, she made it one of her life goals to help preserve the traditional African tales told to her by her grandmother. Take a look at her experience of sharing the power of stories in different languages:
A couple of years after publishing my folktales book, Ezakowethu, in my mother tongue IsiXhosa, I decided to…

Why listening to stories is part of learning to read

In his insightful book, The Rights of the Reader, Daniel Pennac comments: “When someone reads aloud, they raise you to the level of the book. They give you reading as a gift.” People who love reading know the precise value of that gift, and how to access it. But there are those who cannot read, both children and adults. In days gone by, storytelling and,…

Greater Tygerberg Partnership and Nal’ibali transform a parking bay into a library for a day

On  Friday, 18 September 2015, the Greater Tygerberg Partnership and Nal’ibali will transform an everyday parking bay into an outdoor library and reading space. As part of a broader international movement, led locally by Open Streets Cape Town, the library will be one of several transformations of parking bays across the city.
International Park(ing) Day is celebrated on 18 September each year to transform parking…

Story Bosso: Nal’ibali launches storytelling competition

This September, Nal’ibali is launching a nationwide storytelling competition to find South Africa’s first ‘Story Bosso’. Aimed at reawakening a love of storytelling and reading among South Africans of all ages, the competition will connect the public to ideas and inspiration on how to tell stories and read aloud to others; showcase a range of local stories (in all South African languages), as well…

Nal’ibali research: A glimpse into child’s play

Nal’ibali’s Storyplay Co-ordinator, Nadia Lubowski, travelled to KwaZulu-Natal to train and support ECD practitioners in their implementation of the Storyplay approach. In this piece, she relays her personal and professional experience in helping spread the power of stories:
We had been driving since 7am, we had visited six early childhood development (ECD) sites by mid-afternoon. My thoughts were meandering between endless questions and absorbing and experiencing…

Helping blind and visually impaired children discover story worlds

Omphile is a 13-year-old Grade 7 learner at Prinshof School for blind and visually imapired children. She has congenital glaucoma and therefore has limited eyesight. Omphile has always enjoyed reading – perhaps because everyone else in her family reads – and would like to encourage adults and older caregivers to help other blind or visually imapired children experience the joy she has found in…

The dangers of the single story

Catherine Kell, Associate Professor of Linguistics specialising in literary studies at the University of the Western Cape, speaks to us about the danger of the single story and necessity of different narratives:
A group of lees-mammies (reading-mommies) talked to me about story-telling in their lives when they were young children growing up on wine farms in the Western Cape where their parents worked as labourers….

Women’s month: Literacy superwomen

This Women’s Day we salute local librarians, teachers and literacy activists for being inspiring change-makers in their community.
The literacy librarian: Edith Khuzwayo
Edith Fezeka Khuzwayo, the Managing Librarian at the Murray Park Library in the City of Johannesburg, is one of those community members who should be celebrated not just on Women’s Day but every day of the year. In addition to managing the day-to-day running…

Women’s month: Literacy superwomen

This Women’s Day we salute local librarians, teachers and literacy activists for being inspiring change-makers in their community.
The literacy librarian: Edith Khuzwayo
Edith Fezeka Khuzwayo, the Managing Librarian at the Murray Park Library under the City Of Johannesburg, is one of those community members who should be celebrated not just on Women’s Day, but every day of the year. In addition to managing the day-to-day running…