CHARLOTTE AMALIE — The Virgin Islands Department of Human Services (DHS) is encouraging all child care providers to join tomorrow’s Virtual Storytime presentation on Zoom and allow your children to be entertained by Governor Albert Bryan.
Dr. Seuss best stated is best, “The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that
you learn, the more places you’ll go.” The DHS Office of Child Care and Regulatory Services (OCCRS)
has been hosting a virtual Zoom series, designed to engage our children’s interest and excitement
about reading and literacy.
The Virtual Storytime series, also called the “Hour of Power” has been ongoing since December 2021 and has featured exciting reading presentations and storytelling by local authors, Commissioners, Assistant Commissioners, social media personalities, child care specialists and students as well as other community stakeholders.
“The first five years of life offer a critical window for learning, with rapid brain development that does
not occur at any other time of a child’s life. During these early years, children acquire the ability to think, learn language and reason and as research indicated this early literacy is directly related to later achievement in reading, writing, and spelling. If children miss the opportunity to acquire foundational language skills, they are set up for immediate struggles with literacy as soon as they arrive in the classroom.
Research also shows that children who enter kindergarten with poor literacy skills start behind in school and tend to stay behind, leading to poor academic achievement, high dropout rates, and often a lifetime of struggle.
We definitely want to encourage early learning and literacy for our Virgin islands children and are thankful to our public and private partners who have assisted in this,” Commissioner Kimberley Causey-Gomez said.
Please join us for tomorrow’s exciting Story Hour with Governor Bryan at:
Zoom Link: https://zoom.us/j/9066357720?pwd=b2c0MlBzTVlQMXZkM0JmTkdDa0lKZz09
Meeting ID: 906 635 7720 Passcode: 373158