Schools

33 Educators, Elected Officials, Business People Attend Read-Aloud Day at Barr Middle School

The entire school had a guest read to them this morning

To push the importance of literacy and the fact that March is reading month, the Nanuet schools have several programs to get the message of reading to their students.

Just a few days ago, the Elementary PTA hosted , one of many PARP (Parents as Reading Partners) events and Barr Middle School had its own special event Friday morning.

Two dedicated women, Carole Dugan and Dana DeVita, began the Annual ReadAloud Day at Barr and this year their 16th year of organizing this event. The 33 guest readers that came included educators, elected officials, police officers and many others, each reading to a classroom of students.

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“Here at the middle school, teachers are constantly working to improve student literacy,” said DeVita, Library and Media Specialist at Barr. “We give our students multiple opportunities to explore and grow as readers, and we work to incorporate instruction in reading strategies into a variety of subject areas. We also know that it’s important to provide our students with interesting and enriching educational experiences. This ReadAloud allows us to meet all of these goals.”

"They (Dugan and DeVita) have been doing this for a long time," said Guest Reader and Orangetown Police Detective Joe Sullivan. "The ladies who run it are very well organized."

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If the guest readers didn’t bring a book of their own, books were provided based on the grade level he or she was reading to:

  • 5th grade: “The All-American Slurp” by Lensey Namioka or excerpts from Guys Write for Guys Read by John Scieszka
  • 6th grade: Boy by Roald Dahl or A long Way from Chicago by Richard Peck
  • 7th grade: The Teacher’s Funeral by Richard Peck or Chasing Lincoln’s Killer by James Swanson
  • 8th grade: Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes by Eleanor Coerr or Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse

Donna Lennane, Director of Student Support Services, brought in the February 2011 Digest and read The Best Day of My Life as told to Lisa Goff, which details unique life experiences. Clarkstown Councilman George Hoehmann brought in and donated a signed copy of Patricia Polacco’s January’s Sparrow.

Inscribed inside: "Best Wishes to the Students of A. MacArthur Barr Middle School, Patricia Polacco."

“I like Patricia Polacco as she is a very inspiring author,” said Hoehmann. “She has a learning disability and could not read until she was fourteen! Through the efforts of one teacher, Mr. Falkner, Polacco was able to begin to learn to read and over the past 25 years she has written nearly 30 books. I told the kids today that with the right attitude and support from teachers and family you can be just like Polacco—you can achieve if you are willing to work hard and overcome obstacles.”

Clarkstown Councilwoman Shirley Lasker also brought in an outside book: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith.

“I relate to it. As a little girl I grew up in Brooklyn,” said Lasker. “It’s about a girl who’s poor but she loves reading and she becomes a writer. It’s about the middle years, which makes it a very appropriate book to bring in for middle school students.”

“I chose a couple of books they wouldn’t have ordinarily taken off the shelves that awoke their imagination,” said Judge Craig Johns, who brought in a Biography of Hemingway and The Story of Philosphy.

Chief Kevin Nulty of the Orangetown Police Department brought in an outside book as well: Scholastic Encyclopedia of the United States at War by June A. English and THomas D. Jones.

"I read them the "Battle of the Gettysberg." Those three days in July 1863 really changed the course of history," he said. "A lot of good and bad decisions were made and I want the kids to get enthused about the importance of making the right decision."

“The readings that are shared with the students often connect to the curriculum,” said Roger Guccione, Barr Principal. “All readings are interesting and successfully engage the students and their imaginations. This event also offers community members the opportunity to share the educational experiences of our students. The ReadAloud highlights how both students and adults enthusiastically embrace the joy and importance of reading aloud. I am proud that we continue to celebrate this important event, as it highlights the value we place on literacy, building-wide, and the support we enjoy from our community.”

The guests didn’t just read; they also spoke to the students about how reading is used in their profession and its importance to being successful in life.

It’s always enjoyable and I’m happy to show a police office in a good light and what reading has done for my career,” said Clarkstown Detective Sergeant Tim O’Neill, who read to fifth-graders.

Here are the guest readers that stopped by Friday morning:

  • Chris Carey from the Clarkstown Planning Board
  • Alex Gromack, Clarkstown Supervisor
  • From the Clarkstown Council: George Hoehmann, Stephanie Hausner, Shirley Lasker and Frank Borelli
  • Michael Maturo, Orangetown Councilman
  • From the Clarkstown Police Department: Detective Sergeant Tim O’Neill and Officer Doug Arbuco
  • From the Orangetown Police Department: Chief Kevin Nulty and Detective Joe Sullivan
  • The Honorable Victor Alfieri from the Rockland County Supreme Court
  • Chief Louis Falco from the Rockland County Sheriff’s Department
  • From the Clarkstown Justice Court: Honorable Howard Gerber, Honorable Scott Ugell, Honorable Craig Johns
  • Honorable Charlotte Madigan, Orangetown Town Clerk
  • From the Nanuet School Board: President Anne Byrne and Ron Hansen
  • From the Nanuet Schools: Superintendent Mark McNeill, Assistant Superintendent Steven Schlanger, Director of Student Support Services Donna Lennane, NHS Principal Vin Carella, NHS Associate Principal Jim Enright, Miller Principal Betsy Smith, Elementary Assistant Principal Anne Chen, Barr Music Teacher Mike Minard, Barr Teaching Assistant Pam Carcaterra, Barr Reading Teacher Mike Kronberg
  • From Nanuet Little League: Brian Keill and Brian Condon
  • From the PTA: Barbara Irwin and Dominic Ferro

“Students look forward to this yearly event, as it gives them the opportunity to meet and interact with a community member that they wouldn’t normally encounter in school,” said Guccione. “These successful adults, many of whom have been guest readers in our ReadAloud for many years, encourage our students to participate in discussions that clearly affirm the important connection between reading and personal achievement.”

“I think the key to life is reading. You gain the knowledge from the past to learn to deal with the future,” said Falco. Who read Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes to his class.

“I enjoy reading. I try to read everyday,” said Hansen. “You really put yourself in the story and learn from the story they learn a message when they read.”

“I was delighted to be asked to do this,” said Carey. “I’m an avid reader. I hope to inspire these kids to read.”

“It was a wonderful time. I don’t get a chance to get into the classrooms very much so I enjoyed this time with them,” said McNeill. “If I am in a classroom, I’m usually watching, but this was good because I got to read and interact with the students.”

"This sort of event is good for kids to be exposed to leaders in the community that enjoy reading," said Maturo.

"It's one of the highlights of my day," said Byrne, who's been participating in ReadAloud since it started with the exception of last year.

"It's always a great event," said Smith who read Guys Write for Guys Read. "It's fun to see them (the students) again a little older after having them at Miller."

"Its good. We try to let them know how important reading is with whatever job you do," said Alfieri. "It's an exercise of the mind."

"It's an opportunity that I love," said Madigan. "The elected officials reading to the students brings the two communities together: education and elected officials."

"I enjoy coming to this school," said Borelli. "The kids are really interested in the story and (Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes) brings to life what's going on in Japan. The kids also take an interest in my job and ask questions about the town."

"It is always great to read with the students,” said George Hoehmann, guest reader and Clarkstown Councilman. “It gives us as elected officials the opportunity to meet kids and stress how important reading is to their future success in life. I also like to ask the kids about things they think the Town should be doing and I usually get some pretty good responses. It tells me what I already know: that are kids in our town are bright, involved and the future for Clarkstown will be in very good hands."


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