The pages of the book bloom

The children enthusiastically introduced me to the wonderful natural world of Do Son peninsula, to the lush green trees, and to the small things they did together to keep the environment green, clean, and beautiful. Listening to the children tell stories, I felt like they were enthusiastically collecting trash on the beach, after reading the pages of books about the harmful effects of littering. Their little hands nimbly picked up each bottle, each piece of plastic... And I understood that the humanity contained in each page of the book had truly penetrated the children's souls. And more than that, the practical experiences that the club brought had given wings to the words to fly high, landing on specific, meaningful actions.

Pretty Tea Bud Club reading books by the beach

PHOTO: NVCC

Cultivate reading habits in children

The Bu Tra Xinh Club is a gathering place for families who share a great love for books and want to cultivate the habit of reading in their children from the time they enter elementary school. They consider accompanying their children on the journey of discovering knowledge an indispensable part of their role as parents. Even more, they want their children to become good people before becoming talented. Deep inside, it seems that each person has an invisible thread connected to plants?

Not only children love the natural world, but parents also consider reading day as a relaxing time. To have an activity, it is necessary to make a detailed plan, choose books, buy necessary things, find a suitable location and invite people to interact... Although there is a lot of work, the members of the board of directors all work for free. Bringing the children back to the natural environment, the safety of the children is of special concern. Many times, when everything is ready, when it rains and winds, it is considered a waste. No one regrets their efforts but only feels sorry for the children, eagerly waiting for the whole month.

Những trang sách nở hoa - Ảnh 3. — Children in the Pretty Tea Bud Club help author Le Trung Cuong get down the mountain

Once a month, for over 3 years, the club's activities have always become a brilliant flower blooming under the blue sky. For like-minded souls to meet. In the open space of the mountains and the sea. There is the sound of waves lapping, the rustling of leaves, and the chirping of birds like gentle background music, all blending together to create an exciting space for learning and playing.

After reading pages filled with emotions and knowledge, children are free to express their thoughts, share their concerns, and the questions that arise in their minds. And those questions are directly answered by the author or researchers. Then children can hold a pen and draw pictures from the pages of the book or images observed in the natural environment. From there, children are passionate about learning about the plants on the Do Son peninsula and the marine life they see every day.

Each reading session is linked to a topic close to the children and closely linked to major holidays of the year. For example, the full moon in August: funny pictures and colorful star lanterns are meticulously created by the children in the second part of the reading session. There are also reading sessions in the gardens with familiar vegetables, so that the children can appreciate more the farmers who take care of the green shoots day and night, and understand where the indispensable things in the family come from.

Journey of sowing letters, nurturing the future

The Board of Directors also enthusiastically organized elaborately designed field trips: the 2023 book tour and reading trip at Kim Dong Publishing House opened a magical door for the children to enter the cradle of children's books loved by many generations of young readers. In 2024, the children had the opportunity to explore the printing process of a book at the Vietnam Women's Publishing House, to better understand the journey of a work to readers. Trips to learn about the history and culture of Hai Phong , and Do Son itself, have further fostered love for their homeland and country in their hearts.

Những trang sách nở hoa - Ảnh 4. — Tea Bud Club in collaboration with Hoa Phuong Orphanage (Hai Phong), Kim Dong Publishing House organizes a weekend reading corner for children.

Today, Bu Tra Xinh receives the attention and support of many families, who voluntarily send their children to attend, not only in Do Son but also in neighboring areas. The most recent reading session on April 20, 2025, held on Ngoc Mountain, had hundreds of children attending. There were even families who brought their children back from Cau Giay District, Hanoi.

With its humane and innovative organization, the club has received support from the Vietnamese Women's Publishing House, Kim Dong Publishing House, and author - educational researcher Nguyen Quoc Vuong, author Nguyen Thi Thu, writer Do Doan Phuong, writer May, artist Linh Rab... The happiest thing for the board of directors and parents is to witness the miraculous growth of the children through each reading session. The children grow in awareness, become more attached to nature, love books and appreciate their family more.

Những trang sách nở hoa - Ảnh 6. — Join the weekend reading corner of Kim Dong Publishing House

Another special thing that I really appreciate about Bup Tra Xinh is the sharing and kindness that the club spreads. The board of directors not only organizes reading and experience sessions for the children in the club, but also spends time and effort to bring the joy of reading to the children at Hoa Phuong Orphanage, Hai Phong; helps less fortunate children go to historical sites in Hai Phong, participate in the weekend reading corner of Kim Dong Publishing House, experience the Vietnam Military History Museum...

Today there is a good child, tomorrow there will be a good citizen and a good family. Today there are many good children, tomorrow there are good groups and good communities. The activities of Bup Tra Xinh are very much in line with what Uncle Ho always wished for during his lifetime.

Looking through the 2025 summer vacation activity plan, I am even more confident in the strong development of Bu Tra Xinh. Maintaining regular reading sessions with new books and creative experiential activities is a solid foundation. The summer trip to visit the literature museum promises to be an exciting journey of knowledge discovery. And especially, joining hands with the "Bookshelf for Children" project to contribute books to build a library for children in difficult mountainous areas has demonstrated a noble spirit of mutual love.

I believe that, with the dedicated leadership of the board of directors (headed by Ms. Dinh Vu Hoang Hanh) and the children's passionate love for books, Bup Tra Xinh will write even more beautiful stories on the journey of sowing letters and nurturing the future. I hope that there will be many more reading clubs like the one above for children in all parts of the country.