Students from the Unipen Basic School in Mandeville engage in a reading session with (from left) Cecil Charlton, chairman of the Manchester Parish Library; W. Billy Heaven, chief executive officer of CHASE and Patricia Roberts, director general of the Jamaica Library Service, during the opening and dedication ceremony of the Tiny Tots Room at the Manchester Parish Library last Thursday. The room was refurbished by CHASE at a cost of $1.2 million. - Contributed

In a dedication ceremony held at the Manchester Parish Library to reopen the Tiny Tots Room refurbished by the Culture, Health, Arts, Sports and Education Fund (CHASE), W. Billy Heaven, chief executive officer of the Fund urged parents to become the first teachers of their children.

He said the onus was on them to encourage increased reading and not rely on television as a learning tool.

"There are some programmes on television that incite violence and other activities that are not beneficial to learning," he added.

Upgrading cost of $1.2 m

The reading and fun space, upgraded at a cost of $1.2 million by the Fund, now has new equipment and educational materials, as well as a bright and colourful makeover. The new-look room now features state-of-the-art computers and printers, a flat screen television set; book shelves with new and informative books; padded, bright yellow hexagon stools with tables; cuddly stuffed cartoon characters and a fish tank to stimulate the interest of the young minds.

Mr. Heaven congratulated the staff of the Library for their diligence in completing the project and suggested that facilities such as the Tiny Tots Room could benefit children if they were replicated in basic schools.

"Children would not have to travel far to enjoy these benefits," he said.

The chief executive officer of the CHASE Fund, noted that his organisation had been partnering with the Jamaica Library Service (JLS) since 2003 and had, to date, granted some $27 million dollars to support the activities of the JLS.