The Jefferson City School District celebrated the third annual #JCReads Week March 8-12 to raise awareness on the importance of reading, with dress-up days, virtual guest readers and "Drop Everything and Read" day, among many other activities.
The annual event "highlights the district's continued efforts to encourage and create a greater emphasis on reading, both in the school and at home, as well as in and about the greater Jefferson City community," according to a JC Schools news release.
JC Schools participated in Drop Everything and Read Day at 9:30 a.m. Friday and encouraged the community to participate along with students.
Coinciding with Missouri School Read-in Day designated by the state of Missouri as the second Friday in March each year, DEAR is a time when all students stop what they're doing to read. The district also encouraged its schools to set aside time in the week for all students to read.
Normally, guest readers go to schools to read to students for #JCReads Week. This year, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, guests read to classes virtually.
The #JCReads Committee also worked with notable members of the Jefferson City community to capture videos of them reading that were shared with students. Each video is on the JC Schools social media pages for families to view at home.
Among this year's guest readers were Jefferson City Mayor Carrie Tergin; Nathan Hays, with Jefferson City Autoplex; Tonya Ellis, JC Schools coordinator of library and instructional technology services; Lauren, radio host of the Y107 Morning Show; and Cosmo, radio host of the Y107 Morning Show.
Each school also had its own #JCReads activities.
"School-wide reading programs can help change a student's attitude about reading, while also encouraging student collaboration," according to the news release.
At Belair Elementary School, students completed book reviews, "read with a stuffed buddy" and had "Read My Shirt Day." The school had a pajama day Friday, allowing students to be comfy while they snuggled up with a good book.
Belair librarian Jennifer Bearden decorated the school's courtyard with reading activities, book characters and book-related jokes.
Belair teacher Angela Farris held a tournament of books in her third-grade class for #JCReads Week. The students listened to two picture books each day and voted to advance their favorite, similar to a March Madness bracket. The tournament included classic books such as "Goodnight Moon," "When You Give a Mouse a Cookie," and "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?"
#JCReads Week helps build lifelong readers and showcases a love of reading in adults, setting an example and proving to them we are all readers, Farris said.
"It is important to have events like #JCReads because it builds a culture of readers, promotes excitement about reading and gets the students interested in books and authors that they may have never read before," Farris said.
Some elementary students shared why they love to read, with responses such as "you get to feel what the character feels," "you can learn new things," "it helps your brain grow," and "reading is a way to go places you have never been before."
The district-wide theme this year was "Open New Frontiers with Reading." Dress-up days included "Don't Hide Your Love of Reading - Camouflage," "No Horsin' Around, We're Crazy for Books - Crazy Socks," "Readin' Makes you Quick as a Whip, Lickety Split - Western Wear," and "Reading is D.E.A.R. to us - School Spirit Wear and D.E.A.R. Time."
"Along with the state of Missouri, JC Schools recognizes that reading proficiency is a major factor in determining a child's success in school," according to the news release.
Strong reading skills create a strong foundation for learning in all subjects, JC Schools Superintendent Larry Linthacum said.
"With #JCReads Week, we are showing our students the importance of reading, developing their reading skills at an early age, and encouraging them to be lifelong readers," Linthacum said in the news release. "The #JCReads Week activities support our district's goal of 100 percent of our students reading at or above grade level."