April_2019

CELEBRATING

16 CEA ADVISOR APRIL 2019

R e a d A c r o s s A meric a

ALL ABOARD: READING BUS CELEBRATES LITERACY AT CONNECTICUT SCHOOLS CEA delivers miles of fun, piles of books to hundreds of students

“Wowwwww.” “I can’t believe it.” “This is A-MAZING!” Those were just a few of the early reactions from fourth-graders climbing aboard the colorful, 38-foot bus outside Moriarty Magnet School in Norwich. February 25 kicked off the Connecticut Education Foundation’s (CEF) second annual Read Across America Reading Bus Tour, featuring a customized blue bus decorated with well-known Dr. Seuss characters and outfitted with benches, carpeting, and bookshelves packed with hundreds of new books. Hosted by CEF and sponsored by Big Y World Class Markets, iHeartRadio, and the National Education Association, the year’s biggest literacy event rolled into six eastern Connecticut towns over a two-week period to bring the joy of reading to hundreds of students. Complete with guest readers, costumed characters, crafts, and literacy activities, the event also included book bags filled with school supplies, and a new book of their choice for nearly 1,000 students. After Norwich, the tour moved on to Voluntown, Griswold, Groton, Killingly, and Plainfield.

CEA’s Tom Nicholas reads Scaredy Squirrel , the tale of a squirrel who overcomes his fears and discovers an exciting new world beyond his tree.

Griswold students finish a bookmark craft project on the bus.

The gift of reading “This event is about encouraging children to read and turning them into successful, lifelong readers,” said CEF President and CEA Vice President Tom Nicholas, who started off the tour by reading Melanie Watt’s award- winning Scaredy Squirrel to Moriarty School third- and fourth-graders. “We are proud to work with our teachers across the state to promote the importance of reading and to get great books into their students’ hands,” Nicholas said. Fourth-grade

teacher Dawn Bisson, whose students were the first to board the bus, said, “Did you see them? Did you see how excited they were? From series books like Magic Tree House to more challenging texts like Swindle , our kids just love to read, and this gets them even more excited. Reading takes them to places they may have never seen or places they can’t be right now.” Bisson added, “It’s a cold morning, and usually we’re tired at this hour on a Monday, but today

The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane is a literary hit with Plainfield students, who took home “Star Reader” bags filled with reading tips and treasures. Watch the video at youtube.com/ceavideo.

my students didn’t care about the cold or wind. They wanted to be here. They wanted to be on this bus.” Fourth-grade teacher Melissa Kravitz’s class also got a turn aboard the reading bus, as did the students of third-grade teachers Liza Krider and Cindy White, among many others. “When they got on, they were excited to see what it looked like,” said Kravitz, “and one child even commented, ‘Is this a bus or a library?!’ Well, it’s kind of a little bit of both! It’s important for children to

be lifelong readers and to develop that love of reading.” “It gives kids adventures, and they don’t even have to leave their room or their classroom,” said White. Krider added, “I just want my students to love reading and choose magazines, books—anything—and be inspired to read wherever they are.” Students shared their favorite books and genres—which ranged from fantasy to historical fiction— and raved about their time on the reading bus. “That bus was extraordinary,” said nine-year-old Tyler Meadows, one of Bisson’s students. “I liked every detail of it.” Read Across America is an annual reading motivation and awareness program started by the National Education Association (NEA) that calls for every child in every community to celebrate reading on March 2, the birthday of beloved children’s author Dr. Seuss. The program has been so well-received that in many schools it has expanded from a one-day celebration into a weeklong reading event with more than 45 million students, parents, and teachers participating in reading parties, community read-ins, activities, character parades, book fairs, and more.

Griswold students get ready to return to their classrooms after boarding the Read Across America Reading Bus.

Students at Moriarty Magnet School in Norwich were the first to board the Read Across America Reading Bus this year. Back row (L-R): CEA’s Tom Nicholas, Sandy Cassineri, Janet Streckfus, and Michele Ridolfi O’Neill,

along with fourth-grade teacher Dawn Bisson.