Sherman students strive to read 100,000 pages in 5 days

Next week is a big week for Warren A. Sherman Elementary School: it’s reading week! This year the school is challenging students to read as much as possible; in past years students have collectively read 100,000 pages.

There will be a chart in the hallway to keep track of how much the students have read. This year prizes are two Kindle Fires, donated by the Horace Mann Educators Corporation that will go to the two classrooms that read the most pages.

“It’s good to encourage reading at home, and the competition really gets the kids going,” said Principal, Michelle Paton.

“The goal for this week is fun,” said Paton, ”The students are just wrapping up with a week of testing, reading week will provide everyone with an opportunity to simply relax and celebrate.”

Fitting with this year’s theme, “Travel with a Good Book; New Places, New Faces,” each morning during the week a “mystery reader” will read a poem about new places.

On Wednesday, during “Poem in Your Pocket Day,” the PTO has organized for the storyteller, Len Cabral to share some stories with the students, added Paton.

Throughout the week students and their families will be able to participate in many other activities, such as ”Celebration of Learning,” and the “Vocabulary Parade.”

“Celebration of Learning” will take place Wednesday night from 6 to 8 p.m. On this night families will be able to tour the school, which will be decorated for reading week, and partake in a book fair, said Paton.

On Friday the final activity of the week, a “Vocabulary Parade,” inspired by the book, Miss Alaineus, A Vocabulary Disaster, will commence at 2 p.m. Students will select a word and make a hat representing that word. Each child will be asked for their word, a definition of the word, and a preliminary sketch of their hat.

“The most fun thing for the kids is the Vocabulary Parade, we’ve been doing it for two or three years now,” said Paton. “We’re just hoping for good weather.”