Word perfect: Ada Xu and her son Alex Wang, 2, with READasaurus and Joliana Gouwadi with her granddaughter, Krishna Bhasan, 3. Picture: Gene Ramirez
ADA Xu and her small family have been in Australia for a little more than a year.
In that short time in a foreign country, the Chinese wife and mother has gained a great appreciation of language skills.
Despite not speaking English fluently herself, Mrs Xu has taken her two-year-old son Alex Wang, to Parramatta Library every Tuesday morning for group reading lessons.
"I come from China," Mrs Xu said. "I bring Alex here to learn English and play with other kids because in China [there is] only us. He is lonely."
Mrs Xu explained that she and her husband had only one child, as dictated by the law in their country of birth.
Group reading classes in the library each week are more than just a quiet time for mothers, who get to put their children down to be told a story.
For many migrants like the Xus, it is a chance for their children to socialise and learn English skills before they are school aged.
They are lessons that have obviously paid-off for toddler, Krishna Bhasan.
"I am three," she said with out hesitation.
Although her grandmother, Joliana Gouwadi, does not speak English confidently, her prodigy is well on her way to conquering the language.
"Well, I do ABCs since I was two," Krishna said.
In this National Year of Reading, the importance of literacy skills is being promoted by local governments across Australia.
Research has shown a child will be a poor reader at the end of year 4 if they are a poor reader at year 1.
With early intervention, 95 per cent of poor readers can gain average reading skills.
This Wednesday, a special Paint Parra Read story time will be held in Church Street Mall, from 10am to noon.