Children from Kindergarten to Grade 3 at these schools joined Paddington at his 40th birthday party in order to celebrate literacy and the magic of reading.

Paddington arrived at both schools with his storyteller friend who read stories to the children and shared refreshments, balloons and party favours.

Children were encouraged to bring a new or used book as a gift to Paddington. After collecting the books, Paddington gave them to Learning With My Child

Demand for visits from Paddington exceeded TELETOON's expectations, and unfortunately some requests from Quebec schools could not be met this year. However, there is a strong possibility that the program will be repeated next year when more schools can be included. Watch for news in Literacy Clips

WORD-Wide Web
Members of LPQ are invited to participate in our project with the Quebec Drama Federation.

Your students can attend performances of the following plays at the Centaur:

• Taking Sides from Feb. 24 to March 16
• High Life from April 1 to April 20
• Angels in Americaa from May 5 to May 25

For passes to any of these performances, members can call the LPQ office.

Volunteer Training
The Volunteer Bureau of Montreal has been holding three-hour sessions for members of community groups interested in training for the screening of volunteers. Community organizations of all kinds can benefit from these workshops.

For more information, call Michele Provost at 842-3351.

English Vocational Education in Quebec
A number of centres across the province offer a wide variety of English language vocational programs for adults. These tuition-free programs are available for residents of Quebec who have the appropriate prerequisites, as recognized by the Ministry of Education of Quebec.

Students may choose programs in many sectors including Food Services and Tourism, Building and Public Works, Health Services, Secretarial Studies, and many others.

For information about entry requirements, locations or financial assistance, contact your local school board or call LPQ.

Literacy Action Day (LAD)
MCL organized LAD on Thursday, February 19 which enabled participants from across Canada to join MPs on Parliament Hill in Ottawa to sensitize them to literacy issues.

Teams comprised of representatives from provincial coalitions and from MCL's Learners Advisory Network met with MPs for some very positive exchanges.

Marlene Jennings, Liberal member for NDG - Lachine was there and was extremely sympathetic to our cause. The dialogue with Ms. Jennings has begun, and we look forward to the opportunity to meet with her for a more focused conversation in Montreal.

Movement for Canadian Literacy Holds AGM
Following an active and productive year, MCL held its Annual General Meeting on Friday, February 20,1998.

Guest speaker, Peter Calamai, author of Broken Words spoke eloquently on what he called "the two realities of literacy" which can be more simply described as the perception and the reality. Calamai pointed out that some of our most successful initiatives such as ABC CANADA'S LEARN Campaign, Canada Post's Family Literacy Stamp and MCL's work with learners may lead people to assume that all the work has been done and our goals accomplished. That would be the perception.

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