Books to encourage the learning of African languages

Molteno Institute for Language and Literacy has introduced a book series that will encourage children to learn to read in African languages.

Molteno Institute for Language and Literacy are publishing books in indigenous South African languages, which teaches children to read proficiently. Photo: Supplied

Language and literacy institute, Molteno, has published books in eight African languages, dubbed the Bula Vula book series, which teaches children to read African languages more proficiently, Sandton Chronicle reports.

This plan supports the Department of Basic Education’s Incremental Introduction of African Languages (IIAL) policy for Grade Ones.

The book series was launched in 2015 for Grade Ones and will be rolled out until 2026 when it will be introduced to Grade 12s.

The policy makes it compulsory for all schools to offer previously marginalised official languages to scholars in all schools currently not offering any African language other than Afrikaans.

The series encourages children to read African languages proficiently and is available for learners from Grade One to Three with stories that offer a range of entertaining stories for children in over eight languages.

Molteno Institute for Language and Literacy has published books in indigenous South African languages, which teach children to read proficiently. Photo: Supplied

“The Vula Bula African language graded reading series offers carefully structured graded texts for early, emergent and fluent readers in beautifully illustrated stories, contextualised to the young reader’s inner world and life experiences,” said chief executive officer, Massennya Dikotls.

The books contain predictable text to facilitate and encourage reading for enjoyment with simple sentence structure and familiar vocabulary that will enhance reading progress, while clear and detailed illustrations will help with understanding.

“Through reading these books, children learn to speak and read an African language. They learn to identify letters and [also learn] about the structure of words and sentences.

“Additionally, they learn to read with understanding and they learn about the connection between letters and sounds while increasing their vocabulary. Another advantage is that the stories in the books are set within a context children can relate to.”