NEWPORT — On March 20 families were invited to Richards Elementary School to participate in the annual Title I sponsored Family Literacy Night.
This year’s theme was the “All Aboard the Richards Reading Railroad” and all children received a train ticket to visit special train “stations.” Each station was stocked with a variety of themed reading and writing activities geared for Richards students from Preschool through Grade 5.
Families were encouraged to actively engage with their children to experience the joy of learning to read and write as they “traveled” to the beach, the wild west, outer space, and a library.Volunteer “conductors” at each location punched the child’s ticket when a visit to that station was complete.
In addition to every child winning a prize for participating, each child also received a free book to take home and share with his/her family. A “railroad roundhouse book walk” also provided students with the opportunity to win an additional new book including some with a train theme.
All activities, including a delicious pizza snack from Plaza Pizza, assorted cookies, and punch or water to drink, were provided free of charge as part of the family involvement portion of Title I funding.
Approximately 54 families participated with 91 children in attendance and a total of 154 individuals in all. Volunteering their services for the evening were more than 16 teachers and staff members along with eight middle and/or high school students. Richards PTO also participated and assisted by providing a station for free used books for students.
The goal of the evening is to demonstrate the value of learning to read and write along with building on the fun students can have through literacy activities. Parents seem to agree as comments about the evening from parent surveys included: “great family time,” “fun activities make them learn without them feeling like they are learning,” “incorporates learning and fun” and “my kids always look forward to this.”
Submitted by Susan Kerkian and Joanne Truell, Title I Reading, Richards Elementary School.
As your daily newspaper, we are committed to providing you with important local news coverage for Sullivan County and the surrounding areas.