Savannah- The Universal Joy of Reading

I just wanted to put up a quick post to let you all know how much the students here are excited about the library. School is not currently is session, but students spend time at the school playing, talking, and some of the sixth graders are studying for the national exam that will allow them to proceed to secondary school if they pass. Naturally, the students are very curious about what we are doing in the library. At the moment, Emanuel (the Rwandan librarian), Michael (the American school librarian), and I are spending much of the day labeling and organizing books so that the library can be most effectively used. We leave the large windows open to enjoy the fresh air, and today many students were gathered around the windows looking in. It finally occurred to us that they were waiting on an invitation to come in so we asked them to join us. Around 15 to 20 students streamed in and chose books to read in the large open space in the library. Either alone or in small groups, they excitedly enjoyed books about becoming a teacher, books about animals, and atlases (I showed them where I'm from and where the IEE is based.) among many others. It may seem small, but for me it was heartwarming witnessing the simple reality that kids everywhere love books.