POINT PLEASANT — Reading is able to take individuals to places and worlds unknown, and while Nellie Bennett is a very known place in town, this did not stop many children from the borough to come out in droves last Friday for the annual Read Across America kickoff.
Nellie F. Bennett Elementary School was bustling last week as young students came out all for the love of reading. The gym and halls of the school were packed with activities, obstacle courses and reading stations for the kids to enjoy.
Daniel Schwamberger, one of the organizers for this event, told The Ocean Star, “This is our annual Read Across America event and our theme this year is ‘Power Up with Reading: Stories with Powerful Messages.’ All of our books relate to social and emotional learning goals with things like empathy, diversity and helping others. We also use the modality of superheroes where your superpower should be being kind and respectful to others. That is a hidden superpower everybody has.”
“We wanted to celebrate reading with the community while also having the message of being kind,” said Schwamberger. “Read Across America is really important to the district because we are a literacy heavy district. We really value promoting that love of reading early on and we hope that carries all the way through to the upper grades.”
Many high school student volunteers were also scattered throughout the school to help with the event all evening long. Two of these high schoolers were seniors Emma Miller and Kilye Hill.
Hill said, “We are both really involved in our school in multiple clubs that are volunteering here. We think it is nice to give these children in the elementary schools this kind of event where they can come out and hang out with their friends and learn to read, which is really important in their education.”
Miller added, “This is super fun and super exciting to come out here, especially at the table we are at.”
One of the excited readers was Joey May, who said he was having lots of fun at the event. “My favorite book to read is about bugs. I want to be an entomologist when I grow up. My favorite bug is a Junebug, and I was actually born in June.”
His mom, Karen May, said, “We love coming to events like this in Point Pleasant. We have a wonderful school district that is not only family friendly, but welcoming to the community as a whole. They are always putting on such nice events for the children. Read Across America week really instills a love of reading and learning for children. Hopefully we have some future authors here today.”
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