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GARDINER – Each year, First Lady LePage kicks off the READ to Me Challenge. Staff at the school were honored to have her read to students in grades six through eight at the Gardiner Regional Middle School Arthur R. Warren Library. Students were encouraged to read for 15 minutes a day and reminded that by the end of the year it would amount to 27, 375 minutes of reading. She stressed the importance of reading about what interests you, so you can enjoy what you read.
When LePage was a middle school student, she said she enjoyed the Nancy Drew series that lead her to continue to enjoy mysteries and thrillers. The book she selected to read to students was “Henry’s Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad by Ellen Levine.” Students enjoyed asking her questions and provided suggestions about books to read. Cobie Gray, a sixth grader, shared that he found her visit to be very interesting and was impressed that she made time to visit his school.
LePage’s final advice to students was to “Read, read, read!”
Members of the Gardiner Area High School National Honor Society visited elementary schools to read to classes. Other members read to students at Gardiner Regional Middle School. School board member, Ms. Couture, read with students in high school English classes. In Ms. Cheeseman’s 1/B senior English class, she shared how she didn’t care for reading as much when she was a high school student. Her love of reading, and reading well, developed out of necessity when she went into the Navy. She underscored the idea that she advanced quite far, due in part to honing her reading skills, at a time when women were fewer.
In Ms. Kittredge’s 1/B senior English class, the focus point for students was her entrance into the military at a later point in life: “You did all this after you got married and had kids?” They were also interested in the many places she’d worked around the world — again, all with a family back home.
To celebrate Read Across America, students at GAHS enjoyed a Dr. Seuss photo booth in the library.
Helen Thompson School earned a certificate for participating in World Read Aloud Day. The library featured a Staff Book Buzz. Ms. Gould, principal, created a Facebook guessing game based on the Staff Book Buzz to involve families. On Read Across America Day, Ms. Palmer Fish, a local author, visited for the day.
At Laura E. Richards School, students participated in a Read-A-Thon sponsored by the Gardiner Elementary Parent Teacher Association. For the annual Dr. Seuss Day on March 2, community members came in and read to all of the classes at some point during the day.
The principal of Teresa C. Hamlin School, Ms. Shepherd, read to classes. Ginni Nichols, children’s librarian at Gardiner Public Library, visited and read to classes. Pictures celebrating reading were shared on Facebook.
Mr. Keene volunteers at River View Community School, and he is one of the community members who visited and read to students. He read “Shaker Boy” by Mary Lyn Ray. It was about an orphan boy adopted by the Shakers. Mr. Keene was very informed regarding the Shaker community in Maine, and the students were entertained by his anecdotes.
Ms. Fles, MSAD #11 school board chair, read to students and helped them celebrate reading.
A special thanks to the Maine Department of Education for providing the READ to Me Challenge and to the Maine Education Association for sponsoring Read Across America. Staff and students are so grateful to the community for supporting the power of reading.
PHOTO CAPTION: First Lady LePage reading to students at Gardiner Regional Middle School.
