Students explore love of reading

As we walk through our school doors, many of us are not ready to come back after enjoying our spring breaks, but we continue down the hallway and find it to be transformed.

Dr. Seuss characters are scattered on the walls and hanging from the ceiling along with bright colored polka dots. A bulletin board reads, “Glacier View students love to read!” It’s Love of Reading Week, an annual occurrence at Glacier View School that our PBI (Parents Being Involved) group supports. It’s a fun-filled week with community guest readers in our classrooms, free books, a book fair and even an author day featuring Halene Peterson Dahlstrom.

The majority of Glacier View students love to read, although some are less enthusiastic. Love of Reading Week promotes reading and how it can be enjoyed at any age. For the high school, the favorite day is Reading Buddy Day. Our school is unique because high school and elementary students mingle in the hallways, on the bus and in the lunchroom. Each high school student is paired with an elementary student, and we get to read to them for a full class period. Many of us choose our favorite childhood books to read. I remember being in elementary and anticipating the high school student who would read to me. It’s a great time for both the high schoolers and elementary students alike.

Miranda Roub, a sophomore in high school, said, “It was cool to see my reading buddy enjoying the same books that I read as a kid.”

Reading to younger students is just another way high school students can be role models. We can model that reading is fun and show them how they can go on an adventure with the character in the story.

Another fantastic aspect of Love of Reading Week is our community members coming into the classrooms and reading to us. The high school had the pleasure of listening to two Alaska stories read by Suzanne Martin and M.A. Belonzi.

Each student also received a free book during the week. I am an avid reader and love to dive into a new book. Fireside books, Annabella’s Books, Book Inc. and Alaskan Books graciously donated books for our free book day. We also have a book fair all week featuring a wide selection of books from Pandemonium. This is open to the community as well and offers them the opportunity to browse for a new novel or cookbook. The proceeds benefit future extracurricular events for the students.

Although not every student at Glacier View shares the same level of enthusiasm for reading, Love of Reading Week encourages students to read in a variety of fun ways. Perhaps more activities similar to those in Love of Reading Week would continue to encourage students to read inside and outside the classroom. Jodi Talcott, the 3-12 Language Arts teacher, said, “Teachers attempt many motivational strategies to get students to read. One of the most effective at GVS has been buddy reading.”

The culminating activity of Love of Reading Week was a play called “Wings for the King” performed by the third through fifth grades. The main theme was that readers can go on many adventures through books.

Jenny Lee is a Glacier View School sophomore.