The Reading Bus

Milestones

2011-06-07T13:56:00.018+08:00

7 Reading Bus 4WDs in East Malaysia; 1 Reading Bus 4WD in West Malaysia and
1 Reading Bus Tuk-Tuk in Cambodia..

This is the 6th of June 2011.. 2 years after we began our 1st Reading Bus in Kampung Pasir Ulu in Biawak, Sarawak.. Our hearts are overwhelmed and we stand in awe of what God is doing in and through the Reading Bus ministry..

A group of 35 of us just returned from a trip to Cambodia where we launched the Reading Bus in Cambodia in a very severely impoverished village about 2km off the trunk road which runs from Phnom Penh and Siem Riep.. The village in the Baray district was the first recipient of the Reading Bus Tuk-Tuk which we wish to make grow in Cambodia.. The afternoon was hot and it was overly exhausting for the team from Malaysia but seeing the throngs of children who turned up - almost 140 of them - it made our entire trip worth it.. They came as they were.. poor, with so little to wear, malnourished, sweaty and dusty but they all wanted to touch, see and maybe read some books..

I somehow sensed that this was just the beginning..

BE BLESSED!!

The Reading Bus - Rural Children Church Programme

2011-01-25T19:50:00.012+08:00

With Reading Bus 1 actively moving in KK with Ps Jonathan Tse, Reading Bus 2 continues its amazing impact (now even entering schools) in Miri with Grace Methodist Church, Reading Bus 5 entering and impacting new villages in the Miri-Bintulu region; Reading Bus 3 remains in Kuching as the main training mobile library for now and we continue to break new grounds with the Rural Children Church Programme (RCCP).
The RCCP is a response to the overflow and unimaginable response received from the 3-month Reading Bus programme. Some churches recorded a growth of more than 800 percent in the weekly enrolment for the children ministries and an increase of more than 30 percent in general church attendance.
Pastors and leaders found it overwhelming and resorted to seek us to help them sustain the growth and so we dug into our 'chest of blessings' and realised that Mei and I had for many years kept a Rural Children Church curricullum which we developed for the rural churches in Kapit way back in the early 80's.
The RCCP runs for 30 weeks and we use the verses in the Topical Memory Verses (TMS) by the Navigators to create bible stories and actvities so that each child may at least remember 30 bible verses by heart by the end of the programme. We begin with a one hour reading session using the Reading Bus and then move on to the RCCP (ice breakers, singing, memory verses, bible stories and group activities).
We are awaiting the purchase of our 8th Reading Bus and will release it to bless the Pitas region in Sabah.
In June this year, we launch Reading Bus in Kampong Thom in Baray, Cambodia. This will be a Reading Bus with a real difference - a Reading Tuk-Tuk??
Thank you for giving to the Lord.. Hundreds of children have been saved.. Thank you for giving..

THE READING BUS MOVES ON..

THE READING BUS MINISTRY IN EAST MALAYSIA

2010-12-21T17:17:00.015+08:00

It all started with someone offering us some books, that's all!! Today it has spread throughout East Malaysia and we are truly so blessed to be able to spearhead such an amazing vision..

THE READING BUS!!

Reading Bus 1 - reaches out to Kadazan, Dusun and Rungus communities in and around KK. Ps. Jonathan Tse of the All Saints Cathedral carries out the works in the remote areas of Sabah. Elder Kenneth Ng from SIB SKYLINE runs the Reading Bus programs in the hostels run by the church in the outskirts of Kota Kinabalu and has seen some exciting outcomes so far.

Reading Bus 2 - reaches out to the Iban and Penan communities in Miri and beyond. Grace Methodist Church under the leadership of Aaron Hii and Richard Lin along with several very enthusiastic volunteers tirelessly and passionately turn up each week to run the Reading Bus program. They are now looking at expanding the works to Bintulu, Sarikei and to inspire all Methodist churches in the region to adopt and use the Reading Bus as their outreach tool.

Reading Bus 3 - Bethany Ministries reaches out to the Iban and Bidayuh communities in and around Kuching. In the last few months, we have seen more and more villages opening up to the program. Kg. Dunuk, Kg. Karu, Simuti and Kg. Lebur are some of the villages that were so greatly impacted that these villages have decided to run Rural Children Church programs as a follow up of the Reading Bus programs.

Reading Bus 5 - reaches out to several areas and communities in and around the Miri region. Calvary Charismatic Church in Miri spearheaded by Ps. Hii and his team of volunteers go as far as Marudi and have great plans to use the Reading Bus to reach the unreached Iban folks in the Sungai Plan and Kg. Nyalu areas. Ps Hii and his wife have a vision to start pre-school programs to cater to the dire need for basic education in the outskirts of Miri.

Reading Bus 6 - Bethany Ministries reaches out to the Selakau and Bidayuh communities in the Biawak and Padawan areas outside of the Kuching Division. Kg. Pasir Ulu, Kg. Biawak, Kg. Pueh and Kg. Bawang have benefited from the Reading Bus ministry. Kg. Pasir Ulu, which is located about 10 minutes from the border of Kalimantan has set up a basic pre-school program to cater to needs there.

Reading Bus 7 - Good News Fellowship of Kuching reaches out to almost 14 of their outreach ministries and has plans to use the Reading Bus in all its outreach points. They have visions to take the Reading Bus to Saratok and Simunjan in the coming year. Ps Mor spearheads this works with his wife Mary and the leaders of his rural church in Dunuk.

BLESSED CHRISTMAS AND EVEN MORE BLESSED NEW YEAR TO YOU ALL!!

The children enjoy it! They look forward to your coming!

2010-11-23T00:28:00.012+08:00

We often wondered why these children keep coming back week after week despite the rain and the scorching heat..
Another observation is to why the numbers keep increasing week after week.. Someone said it very simply..
The children enjoy it! They look forward to your coming!
It overwhelms us everytime we visit the villages.. The children are so excited and waiting.. The parents are so grateful and feed us with such lovely meals.. The volunteers are increasing.. There MUST be something that we are offering which they find really worth coming back to every week.. It is not that we are better teachers than others.. It is not even that we only turn up once a fortnight.. It is not because they have nothing else to do.. But it is because they see us sharing our lives with them in a respectful and meaningful way.. I realise that every child longs to be able to read.. That every child longs to look into a book.. That every child wants to be dignified by being known as someone who can read.. It means a lot to them.. That their needs are met and that their dignity is restored..
We do not need to study rocket science to be able to do this.. We just need to reach out in love and show some care and we will be there.. Try it and you will see what I mean.. Blessings..

Reading Bus 5 in Miri

2010-11-14T23:34:00.013+08:00

Reading Bus 5 arrived at 10 a.m. in Miri on Saturday the 13th of November and we were all so thrilled to see it and know that it will begin the ministry in Miri under Calvary Miri soon.. With about 8 areas identified in and around Miri and Bintulu, the excitement keeps increasing all the time.. With new groups wanting to be involved and do their part in seeing needs being met and dignity being restored, we are truly grateful to God for providing for our needs as we go around sharing about the effectiveness of the Reading Bus programme and the transformation of lives since we began in 2009.
The Reading Bus team flew in to Miri very early on Saturday morning to meet with leaders who were running the Reading Bus programme to formally discuss some basic ground rules for the setting up of Reading Bus Programme. As the discussion went on, we began to realise the immense possibilities and potentials for this simple project to expand in leaps and bounds.. Questions like.. What do we do when we have more than 100 children turning up for the Reading Bus programme? What do we do after the 3 months programme and what do we do with the children coming back every week? These were really good problems to have and we are sincerely very thrilled that more can be done to see more people being involved with the Reading Bus programme..
The outcome of the discussion was to look into possibilities of starting child care centres in the same premises for those who wish to run daily programmes with the children.. And a Children Church programme for those who wish to carry on with some weekend programme for the children.. Children and young people just want to have something fun and good to do during the weekends - if we can offer them such an avenue, I can see thousands of young people growing up with dignity, principles, values and most of all hope..
I am envisioning village after village running the Reading Bus programme for 3 months and then continued with some fun-filled children and youth activities that will be so vital for nation building.. What do you think!!

You Have Touched My Heart..

2010-11-08T08:09:00.008+08:00

Week after week we always see and experience something fresh to encourage us as we take the Reading Bus into the remote villages in Sabah and Sarawak..
Last weekend, we had nearly 90 children who turned up at Tudan; another 60 turned up at Karu and 35 children turned up at Sepupuk.. All because they want to see, touch and read some books..
We have purchased another Reading Bus for the Miri region and we are hopeful that we will get another 2 more by the end of this month - one more for Kuching and the other to be sent to Kota Kinabalu in Sabah.. All because we want to see needs being met and dignity being restored..
At the end of every trip, the volunteers return more encouraged and blessed as they see lives being touched, meets being met and dignity being restored..
I was speaking to a few groups of students over the weekend and I found myself talking to them regarding some heart issues.. One of the things I asked them was regarding what they would want others to say of them at the end of the day.. We all do so much; try to achieve so much; work real hard to better ourselves; we fill our minds with so much of information that we think we have all the answers to the world's problems.. But at the end of the day.. the marginalised are more marginalised; the poor are getting poorer and the world is getting no better..The truth or the heart of the matter is this.. when reality sinks in, we begin to wake up and do some real soul searching - What is life REALLY all about?? Some food for thought..

I STAND IN AWE OF YOU!!!

2010-10-25T12:19:00.009+08:00

I STAND IN AWE OF YOU.. Some of us may remember this song and wonder what it means.. For those of us who were in Kampung Karu last weekend, we can say we are aware of what it means - even if it may seem to only be a glimpse of what it may truly mean.. I STAND IN AWE OF YOU!!
We had more than 70 children and young secondary students who turned up for the Reading Bus programme.. There were 12 new comers who came because they saw the books and heard about the fun their friends had in learning English..
The older ones were peer tutoring those who were younger and as the Reading Competition began, there was such an enthusiasm in the faces of these 'leaders' who were only about 15 years old.. They just wanted to see their 'students' reading well and getting their names on the chart.. The hall was so packed that we had to stand outside in the porch area to run the Reading Tests.. We did not have enough Ladybird Reading Books and so we had to get 3 children to share one but this did not deter them at all..
In the evening as we ran the Village Alpha programme, more than 80 people turned up.. The hall was packed and still there were people standing outside it.. That awesome evening we had more than 60 decisions to follow Him.. We discussed with the leadership regarding post Reading Bus programmes and it was decided that we will start Playschools in January in all the 15 villages we have visited till now.. While we were still discussing, I got this amazing sms from a very dear friend - Regarding the Reading Bus, we now have.. 1. Sungai Plan 2. Kampung Nyalu 3. Emart 4. Saberkas 5. Sepupuk 6. Sungai Kelabit 7. Kampung Kenaan 8. Bekenu.. and with this, we need 5 more sets of all the books and the library chests and the sms went on to say that: we are looking for a 4WD - can you help us find one?
With all that happened that evening, it brought tears to some and such a thrill to my heart that we are indeed taking more and more villages as He showed us and this is His doing and not ours.. Driving back at about 10 pm in the dark and slippery roads, Reading Bus 1 skidded off the road at a sharp corner and ran aground in a ditch.. So many things could have happened but we see His hands in it all.. None of the volunteers were hurt, the land cruiser suffered some damages but above all He spoke to us about not basking in the success of the day but to be mindful of the realm that we are in and the many more villages which needs the Reading Bus.. I STAND IN AWE OF YOU!!

The Acceleration has started...

2010-10-17T23:20:00.021+08:00

Our Mission team headed by brother Richard Lin ran the Reading Bus for the second time at Tudan Methodist Church for the indegenious people yesterday. There were more than 70 children who turned up. Then, at night, they did the Village Alpha Course in BM. At the same time time, I am told by the Mission Chairman, brother Aaron Hii, that Rev Lim from Piasau Baptist Church is very interested in exploring with us on how to run the Reading Bus programme. They are going to meet next Tuesday over breakfast to discuss the possibility. I shared the vision of The Reading Bus with the Sarawak Indigenous People Committee under the SCAC on Wednesday morning. The District Commissioner of Evangelism in Bintulu, Bro. Patrick Liw is interested to do The Reading Bus. The Sarikei District Superintendant, Rev. Kwan is also interested. For both these districts, their plan is run The Reading Bus next year.[Email received from Rev. Law of Grace Methodist Church in Miri].
In November we will be introducing the Reading Bus to the Anglican church in Kuching with a plan to have the various parishes running them in 2011.. As far as I can sense it, the acceleration has started and we are on board with what God wants to do in and beyond Kuching..

This coming Saturday Reading Bus 1 and 3 visits Kampung Karu in Padawan.. we are excited.. so SMILE:)

The Reading Bus goes into Indonesia

2010-10-10T23:23:00.008+08:00

I just returned from Serukam, a little town in Kalimantan on the island of Borneo (many people still do not know that almost 2/3 of the Borneo island belongs to Indonesia).. I have, for a long time, thought of making this trip but it just never happened.. I believe God knew my heart and how He wanted us to take the Reading Bus beyond Kuching, Sarawak and East Malaysia.. The opportunity came when uncle Chai Say told me about his trip to Serukam this weekend and I agreed to follow him so that I could see the works in the Bethesda Medical Centre which was set up almost 50 years ago by two very young (then..) missionaries from the States.. It was something that I had wanted to do before I left the island of Borneo.. God went ahead of us and even blessed us with a bonus - the honour and pleasure to be in the same vehicle with the founder of this awesome work..
Dr. Greary or Opah (as he is fondly known at the hospital) was just returning from the States and he shared with me how the works began and lots of stories about the pioneering days.. I sat in the car, so mesmerised by his humility and gentleness.. He had the voice of a loving father and he was always giving glory to God for all the works that has been done over the many years. He was so excited to hear about our story - the Reading Bus and encouraged me so much to keep on with it as the Lord will surely lead and guide and cause the works to grow.. Here is a man who spent almost 50 years in the interiors of Borneo, setting up a hospital which has blessed thousands of people, created jobs and training for thousands of nurses, restore families and provided education to thousands of children but he was getting so excited to hear our story!!
As Moh (the Reading Bus coordinator for rural villages in Kuching) and I introduced the Reading Bus and the programme to the leadership in the hospital, there was such an excitement in them.. They asked us many questions and at the end of the meeting, they decided that they would embrace this programme and use it to teach basic English and literacy to all the surrounding villages. I was overwhelmed with the passion and enthusiasm of Dr Herman (the director of the Bethesda Medical Centre) as he got the team together and shared with them what they could do; delegated responsibilities and made concrete decisions as to when the Reading Bus is to begin in Serukam - Indonesia..
We are overwhelmed by the needs all around us and as we move from one village to another with a desire to see needs being met and dignity being restored, we see God moving us a step ahead in bringing the nations to us one by one too..

Be blessed..

Kg Dunuk (Kuching), Kg Nyalu (Bintulu), Tudan ( Miri)

2010-09-19T14:57:00.020+08:00

The 18th of September 2010 was a significant day in the history of Kampung Dunuk as the Reading Bus Library was formally handed over to the village so that this little village (which is located almost 90km away from Kuching) could now have their very own library filled with more than 400 books.
As the parents and children gathered to witness the graduation of 54 children, we kept seeing light at the end of the tunnel and hope for the future for this little village and for many to come..
In Bintulu, Kampung Nyalu became the blessed recipient of The Reading Bus. Volunteers from Miri braved their way to the village by road and then on a long boat and finally walking up to the longhouse to be greeted by the enthusiasm of parents and children.
Every child deserves the right to be blessed with some decent and child based books to help them become life long learners.
Children love books and more so if they are colourful, appealing, relevant and easy to read. How can reading be regarded as boring if the books are so nice and those teaching are so gentle and kind I wonder.. Food for thought, I believe..
Tudan in Miri experienced a fresh breather of life and hope when The Reading Bus was launched in this resettlement area this morning. More than 40 children registered themselves to participate in this 6 week programme which involves lots and lots of reading.. The volunteers were so thrilled to know that still many others will turn up in 2 weeks time and are expecting anywhere beyond 60 children to come for the Reading Bus programme.
The Reading Bus team in Miri aims to reach out to help the nomadic Penans in Ulu Belaga and this enthusiasm and effort by these precious folks in Miri has been a powerful source of inspiration to all of us here in Kuching.

The Reading Bus on Video

2010-09-02T07:28:00.010+08:00

The Reading Bus has visited 10 villages and helped set up a kindergarten in one of them. This is our way of saying how much we love our nation.. Happy Malaysia Day..

Giving Hope.. Breaking Poverty Barriers..

2010-08-22T16:34:00.008+08:00

In communities like Kg Dunuk you may need to wait for days or months before someone brings you an extra revision book or a story book to read. So unlike the cities where there seems to be a glut of unwanted books kept in homes just to show that we can read! The disparity and the divide is so obvious and it looks like there is an elephant in the room - but no one wants to talk about it or address it for many reasons.. some because it does not involve them; some because these folks are not their people; some because they have it all; some are simply too busy to think about such needs; some just plainly want to live them to the politicians to address such issues and the list of excuses can go on and on..
The Reading Bus brings such hope to remote villages in Sabah and Sarawak. How else can we break away from the barriers and chains of poverty.. We are doing our little part here and we hope that in this village, many children will begin to find hope to live and survive in this harsh world..
Changing one village at a time so that we can see a community transformed and moving on.. Changing one community at a time so that we can eventually see a nation transformed and moving on.. Big dreams I know, but we have to start from somewhere..

It's All About Touching Lives!!

2010-08-08T14:24:00.006+08:00

This is Adrian and he is 7 yrs old. His story is so sad that the person who shared with me broke down while relating it to me.. My heart went out to him and I decided to observe him throughout the entire visit and realised that he is like all other kids too.. Wanting to feel safe and needing to be loved and desiring to do well in life and hoping that life can be fun.. Being abandoned and left to fend for himself under the care of ones who do not care for him at such a tender age can really be very unfair to him.. As I stood there observing him, my mind began to race through seemingly the entire universe, trying to see how the Reading Bus could bless him and be a support to him..
When the sticker book lesson on Words began, I saw Adrian sitting with someone else and he was intensely listening to Barnabas as he taught.. As the lesson progressed on, the children were asked about toys.. This one little boy caught my eye.. He was intensely looking at the page which contained pictures of toys.. I sat there wondering as to what could be going on in his mind.. I thought about my own children and those whom I knew and growing up in the cities where we always seem to have more than the toys in the sticker book. Could he be thinking to himself and asking questions like.. how do I get one of these? Why is it that the kids in the cities always seem to have more than what I have? If only I had one of these? and so on..
We returned home after a very heavy downpour.. after nearly 2 hours.. having travelled more than 200 km since we left on the Reading Bus trip at 12 noon and in my mind I kept thinking about Adrian and the little boy.. I found myself in tears and thanking God for giving me an opportunity to touch lives.. Even if it was for Adrian and that little boy in this remote village near the border of Indonesia.. in a little village called Kg. Dunuk..
The Reading Bus is in many ways about touching lives.. It's All About Touching Lives!!

One Village at a time...

2010-07-17T17:04:00.010+08:00

KAMPUNG DUNUK - a tiny Bidayuh village situated about 20 minutes (on foot) away from Kalimantan, near the border town of Tebedu..
The sheer joy of seeing the tens of children gathering to learn to read and have access to basic reading materials thrills us so much.. We will keep moving from one village to another and as we do, we keep seeing the transformation. Hope is rising, hearts are yearning for more..
Frankly, the needs are plentiful. Beyond basic reading, we have sensed the need to help the young people in the village to be competent with what is happening in schools. The fear of exams is one thing - the lack of opportunities like extra tuition and seminars (like those which are so commonly available and sort after in the cities..) puts these students from the villages on a disadvantage. To address and counter this situation, the Reading Bus will be organising a PMR and SPM seminar to cater to the needs of the students. Teaching is about lives.. not mere methods or systems.. it is about people in school whom we lovingly label as STUDENTS..

Meeting Needs, Restoring Dignity!!

2010-07-05T20:26:00.014+08:00

Life can become so mundane and busy at the same time.

God-given OPPORTUNITIES can become blur and be seen as an INCONVENIENCE... While mankind keep advancing in every field of science and technology with a quest for better results, faster outcomes and higher goals, the needs around us do not seem to get lesser but rather greater in number... Advancement is meant to decrease poverty and marginalisation but what we see around us staggers us so much...

While the world gets caught up with the quest for more, one thing which I have resorted to do is to Meet Needs and Restore Dignity in those who live oblivious and disconnected with the quest for MORE!! They have BASIC needs - a NEED to be able to read! a NEED to be able to remain in school! a NEED to be able to make it in life without having to be overly dependent on others! a NEED to be able to put their heads up high and say that I gave my best...; a NEED to be free from a world that bullies the weak and helpless!!

In the coming week we begin with the 2nd season of taking the Reading Bus to the villages. It has been one month of planning and preparation... Now it is time to get out there and to start MEETING NEEDS and RESTORING DIGNITY so that the people may know that they are FEARFULLY and WONDERFULLY made by a God who loves them...

The Graduation Day - May 22nd - 2010

2010-05-22T21:38:00.000+08:00

After 6 weekends and being in the same village for 3 months, the Graduation Day is something we all look forward to. It marks the completion of a series of elementary English reading programs, the completion of the Village Alpha course and the handing over of the Mobile Library to the village.

It is a special weekend which is quite inevitably marked with emotional moments - for the children and village folks, it is the end of our visits; as for the volunteers and and the Reading Bus team, it is parting with hand made chests filled with brand new books and charts but beyond that the joy of seeing the Mobile Library being owned and operated by the local communities.

Our dream of seeing 20 Reading Buses by the end of the year 2010 is slowly but surely coming to past. The dream of seeing village after village being blessed by the impact of the Reading Bus is also coming to past - one village at a time!

June 2010 - a month of reflection and consolidating for greater impact for the next season beginning on the 9th of July 2010..

What do YOU see!!

2010-05-12T08:23:00.006+08:00

What do YOU see
When you see a child?
What do YOU feel
When you see their smile?
In my human eyes
I see something mundane;
But with the eyes of faith
I see hope again and again.

We have words to express
The content of our hearts;
But how can we express
If words are undecipherable and hard!

What do I see?
I see a young child smile
With hope that life will change.
We teach basic ABC
And yes we may only be dealing with these
We don't teach essay and thesis.
And like what someone said
Try writing a thesis without knowing your ABC!

What do I see?
I see a village being transformed
Chains of Marginalisation being broken.
I see a nation being reborn
With hope which goes on and on.
This is what I see...

How it all began... and where we are heading...

2010-05-05T10:40:00.000+08:00

In April 2009, we were blessed with thousands of children books and decided to challenge the young people in the city to start a mobile library program in the kampungs and villages around Kuching. With the help of some close friends we purchased a good second-hand 4 wheel drive and drove to Kampung Pasir Ulu (which is 2 hours away from Kuching). The response we got from the village folks was so overwhelming that we began to envision many other villages being blessed by this simple and yet powerful endeavour in seeing children and school going teens enjoying the English language and eventually doing well in school.

In looking back over the one year, we have gone to 7 villages - Kampung Pasir Ulu, Kampung Pueh, Kampung Biawak, Kampung Bawang, Kampung Simuti, Kampung Lebur and Kampung Sibakar.
We run 3 Reading Buses and we have recently made in-routes to Sabah and we are eagerly awaiting the launch of a major endeavour in running the Reading Buses in Sabah. We have been strategising and working towards getting a Reading Bus for the Penan communities in the Ulu Baram and Apoh Tutoh areas outside of Miri. Some friends have indicated a keenness to start one there. Even some other friends have expressed a desire to adopt the Reading Bus for their own outreach villages.

God Willing, we are trusting Him for a total of 20 Reading Buses for the whole of East Malaysia by the year end. One thing I was reminded this morning as I was quiet... that Faith PLEASES God!

A Picture Paints a Thousand Words

2010-05-04T16:21:00.002+08:00

Many people have been asking us lots of questions about The Reading Bus and we have been trying hard to explain it to them that it is a land cruiser loaded with 4 chests of books.. and it is a mobile library which goes to the rural villages of Sarawak... Let the pictures speak to you... So here goes...

The Reading Bus

2010-04-29T06:42:00.024+08:00

A typical Reading Bus team will consist of a team of 2 adults (the driver and co driver), 2 youths who are trained to facilitate the lessons and a volunteer who will man the library. It will be beneficial to have those who are conversant in the local dialects of the villagers but as our emphasis is in promoting the English Language, thus it is not a criterion for these visits.

Visitations are organised through invitations made by the local village leader who then informs the students/children/teenagers from the village about the programme. The team will be hosted by the local leader or in a specified location where the library will be operated from.

The team will bring along approximately 400 books, Reading Charts, 4 different Reading programs, food and other items (like old clothe and educational toys for the children and village folks).

To ensure continuity and to avoid unwanted dependency on the Reading Bus team, there will only be 6 visits (on a fortnightly basis) over a period of 3 months. Weekends are suitable as most villagers and volunteers are usually available. Over the period of 3 months, the Reading Bus team will have a programme to suit the different age groups.

At the end of the programme the Reading Bus team will present gifts and certificates to verify that the participants have gone through the Reading Bus programme. A special ceremony is organised to celebrate the completion of the programme. There will also be the handing over ceremony of a brand new library (with a new set of books) to the village and the appointment of the 2 volunteers (who have been trained) as the official ‘librarians’ for the village.

An effective Reading Bus programme needs:

1. A reliable second hand 4WD – ideally a

Toyota Land Cruiser (estimated at RM30K)

2. Books (provided by Bethany Ministries)

3. Lesson Plans (provided by Bethany Ministries)

4. 4 hard plywood chests (estimated at RM80 each)

5. RM100 for food and fuel per trip.

For more information, please email us at thereadingbus@gmail.com

The Reading Bus

2010-04-12T12:28:00.010+08:00

What’s it all about?

The READING BUS is one of the community projects of Bethany Ministries. It is a mobile library programme, in which a rural village will be adopted for a period of three months and a team of 5 will be sent out to the village every fortnightly over the weekends to help set up a library in the village. To see this being achieved the team will run several delayed education, reading intervention and motivational programmes alongside the Alpha Course which will be conducted during the nights.

Goals & Objectives

To provide reading opportunities for rural children and teenagers
To initiate a feasible, easily available and manageable mobile library programme for the villages
To provide avenues for urban teenagers to give by teaching and conducting elementary English reading programmes
To help elevate reading interest amongst children and teenagers in the village
To train a minimum of 2 volunteers to carry on the library program after 3 months
To set up a permanent library in the village with sufficient numbers of books to ensure continuity

The Reading Bus Schedule

Time	Activity	Resource
0900 - 1700	Library Programme	Library chest Children & elementary English language books Library cards Library books index
1000 - 1100	Sticker Book Programme	Sticker Books (Titles include: Animals, Around the House, Colours, Mix & Match, Nature, Numbers, Patterns, Shapes, Sizes, Time and Words)
1100 - 1200	“Most Important Story Ever Told” Lesson	“Most Important Story Ever Told” Booklets Worksheets
1500 - 1700	Key Words with Ladybird Reading Competition	Ladybird Books Marking Schedules Progress Chart Assessors

The Reading Bus

Milestones

The Reading Bus - Rural Children Church Programme

THE READING BUS MINISTRY IN EAST MALAYSIA

The children enjoy it! They look forward to your coming!

Reading Bus 5 in Miri

You Have Touched My Heart..

I STAND IN AWE OF YOU!!!

The Acceleration has started...

The Reading Bus goes into Indonesia

Kg Dunuk (Kuching), Kg Nyalu (Bintulu), Tudan ( Miri)

The Reading Bus on Video

Giving Hope.. Breaking Poverty Barriers..

It's All About Touching Lives!!

One Village at a time...

Meeting Needs, Restoring Dignity!!

The Graduation Day - May 22nd - 2010

What do YOU see!!

How it all began... and where we are heading...

A Picture Paints a Thousand Words

The Reading Bus

The Reading Bus

What’s it all about?

Goals & Objectives

The Reading Bus Schedule

LIBRARY PROGRAMME

STICKER BOOK PROGRAMME

“MOST IMPORTANT STORY EVER TOLD” LESSON

KEY WORDS WITH LADYBIRD READING COMPETITION