Baltimore author makes a difference by teaching children how to write books
BALTIMORE -- WJZ's latest community MVP is working hard to improve literacy rates while helping children to harness the power of the written word.
Leslie Crawford of Southwest Baltimore sat down with Torrey Smith to discuss how she is making a difference by teaching children to write books.
Crawford said she wanted to give back to her community using something that she loved: writing.
She said she was active with her son's school and that helped her to see how many children from underserved communities were struggling with reading and writing.
"One day, I was at a luncheon and I said to my friend, I said, 'What if I started helping kids write books in a way to get them engaged with reading and writing," she said. "And that's how When Children Write started."
It doesn't matter what you do, you have to know how to read, Crawford said. If a person has an interest in going into the music industry, then they have to know how to read music, she said.
Unfortunately, many children are not reading at their grade level and are interested in the material that they are assigned to read for school, she added.
"So, I figured why not read the things that you and your classmates write," she said. That will get you into wanting to read more."
Crawford showed Smith some of the books the children had put together.
"I tell my students all the time because they ask the same question: Is this just going to be pieces of paper stapled together? And I tell them, 'No. You're going to get a book and it's the same type of book you would see inside of a bookstore or a school classroom," she said.
Some of the children enjoy giving those books to their parents for Christmas, she said.