Family Literacy Week

A woman and child sit at a table laughing while using stickers.
Celebrate Family Literacy Week in January with events, activities and contests for the whole family.

Each January, families, schools, libraries and communities across BC celebrate Family Literacy Week.

It’s about families learning together through daily activities.

Across Canada, we celebrate ABC Life Literacy Canada’s Family Literacy Day on January 27th.

In BC, we celebrated Family Literacy Week January 21st – 28th, 2024. #FLW2024

This year’s theme for Family Literacy Day and Family Literacy Week was “Let’s have a family party!”

What can be more fun than planning, creating and getting ready for a party? Literacy activities are part of a party. Children can have fun and learn at the same time.

  • Decoda provides themed resources every year to help you plan your events and activities.
  • We also hold an annual Family Literacy Week photo contest open to all BC residents for a chance to win prizes.

What is family literacy?

“Family literacy refers to the way parents, children, and extended family member use literacy at home and in the community. Family literacy occurs naturally during the routines of daily living and helps children and adults get things done.” – Hayden, R. & Sanders, M. (2007).

Family Literacy Week 2024 backgrounder cover

Check out our FREE 2024 Family Literacy Week resources.

Find activity sheets, fact sheets, and great ideas to help your family or community celebrate Family Literacy Week!

Let’s have a family party! Family Literacy Week 2024 Resources

Check out our collection of past Family Literacy Week resources.

Congratulations to our winners!

Left: adults in a literacy class. Right: Two children dressed as pirates in a toy boat.
Left: LifeSkills program at Charles Hays Secondary School (credit: Allison Smith). Right: literacy pirates – Nora and Theodore (credit: Curtis Weibe).

Congratulations to the individual prize winner of our Family Literacy Week photo contest draw: literacy pirates – Nora and Theodore, at Literacy in Kamloops Family Literacy Day event! They have won a family literacy kit.

Congratulations to the class prize winners of our Family Literacy Week photo contest draw: The students reading The Westcoast Reader in the LifeSkills program at Charles Hays Secondary School in Prince Rupert! They have won a $100 gift card.

Thank you to everyone who entered the contest!

Check out the Family Literacy Week 2024 events featured on our Community Events page!

FLW24 general social media postThis year we offered a media release and social media resources to promote Family Literacy Week in every community.

The Province of British Columbia has proclaimed Family Literacy Week (January 21-28, 2024) in British Columbia. Families are encouraged to celebrate by reading books, playing games, cooking or attending local events together.

Minister Anne Kang's head shot.
Minister Anne Kang.

“Literacy is important to our daily tasks and helps families and communities thrive,” said Anne Kang, Minister of Municipal Affairs. “Making the time to read together, attend a literacy event or working on a puzzle as a family, plays a vital role in children’s development through creating lifelong memories and opportunities. As a former special education teacher who supports lifelong learning, I am proud of the great work Decoda Literacy solutions, our libraries, and community partners have done for literacy in B.C.”

Each year, the Province provides more than $2 million in support of community literacy to Decoda Literacy Solutions, a non-profit organization that uses this funding to support the co-ordination of community literacy services and initiatives in B.C., including Family Literacy Week. The BC government also contributes $500,000 to the Vancouver Sun’s annual Raise-a-Reader campaign and programs. In addition to regular yearly funding, the Province provided a one-time boost of $1 million to Decoda Literacy Solutions in 2023.

Read the complete press release

For more information on Family Literacy Week contact Maureen Kehler at mkehler@decoda.ca.