MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Many kids in the Mid-South struggle with reading. It is a subject that not only involves educational development, but life skills as well.
Now some local groups are coming together to fight for literacy.
There is a fight in the City of Memphis. That fight is to tackle illiteracy.
“We are down to only 11% of students being at reading level, so we have a lot of students all around us who are struggling to be good at reading,” said Miranda Brown, Streets Ministries Elementary Coordinator.
All help is valued.
Streets Ministries is an organization focused on mentorship, outreach, recreation, and education.
“This week is the fight for literacy campaign. It is an awareness campaign that is striving to bring awareness and support for organizations in Memphis that are striving to increase the literacy of students in our community,” said Brown.
Partnering with Coaching for Literacy and other local organizations, the campaign raises funds for groups focusing on literacy.
Streets Ministries has a program called Streets Smarts in which they work with children, one-on-one, to improve reading skills.
“I noticed a lot of reluctance at the beginning because a lot of the students were struggling, so there wasn't an excitement for reading. 'Why do we have to do this? I don't want to do this.' To now students who are at reading level or surpassing reading level asking me,” said Brown.
It is not only progress in reading, but also confidence.
"It makes me want to cry. It is the best thing and as someone who myself struggling to read as a young girl, and that taking a long time for me to learn, and to love... To see them at a young age, get that ability... not just something they can do for fun but also shows them that there are going to be things in their life that are difficult but that they can push through,” said Brown.
The children are showing resiliency at its best while fighting for literacy.