(Chelsea Update would like to thank Ryann Skrypec and Kimberly Gillow for the photos in this story.)
By Lisa Carolin
Students in the Chelsea School District and across the U.S. have a common goal this month: March is National Reading Month, and the goal is to celebrate reading in a variety of ways.
Beach Middle School sixth-graders from the Gold team had their reading kickoff the first week of the month with a visit to North Creek Elementary School. The sixth-graders visited every North Creek classroom to read to students and to listen to the North Creek students read as well.
“This month, 6th Gold is working on reviewing nonfiction text features by reading texts that focus on the nationally and internationally celebrated days of March,” explained Beach Middle School teacher Ryann Skrypec. “We are reading texts on anything from the history of pound cake to the benefits of napping.”
She said that every time they read about a topic, they do, play, or eat whatever they read about.
Sixth-graders are reading Footer Davis Probably is Crazy and will have the chance to meet its author Susan Vaught when she visits both Beach and the Washington Street Education Center on Tuesday, March 17, and Wednesday, March 18, as part of Authors in Chelsea, which is presented by the Chelsea District Library.
Students at North Creek will welcome author Alyssa Capucilli as part of the Authors in Chelsea event. North Creek Principal Kimberly Gillow says the school kicked off its March is Reading Month festivities with a camping themed assembly for the whole school.
“We shared with our students that each time they read 1,000 books, we will ‘travel’ to a different national park,” said Gillow. “Our staff members have been collaborating to create videos where they are ‘green screened’ into different national parks. We will release a new video for students to watch each time they reach a goal.”
Gillow says that her school’s goal for the month of March is to read 20,000 books.
Every day of the week means something different for reading month at South Meadows Elementary School. There are “book talk Tuesdays” with book reviews in the media center, “wear words Wednesdays” when students wear a shirt or hat with words on them and read all day, and “reading drill Thursdays”, when students need to have a book ready at all times to participate in extra reading time in the hallways of the school.
Author Kirby Larson will be South Meadows’ guest as part of Authors in Chelsea.
Students can celebrate their successful month of reading and have more time to read over spring break, which will run from March 30-April 3.
