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Pomperaug Elementary School Students
Learn About United States The annual Pomperaug Elementary School (PES) Reading Incentive Program this year highlighted famous national monuments, landmarks, and historic figures. A collaboration between the PES PTO and the school, the Reading Incentive Program is a school wide, two-week-long celebration of reading. Each year, PES Media Specialist Mrs. Pat Smith and the Reading Incentive Committee choose a theme and encourage the students to read above and beyond their regular reading habits. This year’s theme was “Read Across America: Oh, the Places You'll Go.” The Committee also came up with the activities, the interactive bulletin boards and materials for this program that were given to each student, including a Dr. Seuss bookmark, U. S. map and Dr. Seuss doorknob hanger. The theme was chosen to help celebrate the 50th anniversary of the publication of Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat. PTO Reading Incentive Coordinators Jeanne-Marie Hudson and Debbie Klein devised a mock bike race across the United States. As students kept track of the minutes they read nightly, they were awarded "miles" for minutes and each grade progressed across the map. The theme was also integrated into other aspects of the curriculum to promote awareness of U.S. facts and history. “On the bulletin board, the students followed their grade's progress across the U.S. by watching color-coded bicycles advance daily. We placed well-known book characters at important historic sites and national landmarks for inspiration,” said Co-Coordinator Jeanne-Marie Hudson. “We also celebrated ‘fun’ days during the week when the kids did something special related to the theme. On the last day of the Reading Incentive Program, many students dressed up as a U.S. monument, landmark or famous historical figure, and we also awarded prizes to the top readers.” Media Specialist Pat Smith praised the Reading Incentive Coordinators and the children for their labor of love. “A lot of work went into a very successful incentive program where the children not only read but learned a lot about the U.S. as they traveled first around and then through the center of our country,” said Mrs. Smith.  |