(left to right) Councilwoman Sabina Matos (Ward 15) reads aloud to Mrs. Doran’s first graders for Reading Week. Head of School, Chris Haskins, stresses the importance of literacy by joining in the All School Read In during Rhode Island Reading Week. PCS Kindergartener, Dominick Moise, adopts the slogan of Reading Week, “Be Your Own Hero”, as Superman and enjoys a storybook during the All School Read In.
The Rhode Island State Council urged kids to “Be Their Own Hero: Read” for this year’s Reading Week theme. It didn’t take much more encouragement than that for Paul Cuffee Students to get into the spirit. Wonder Woman, Spider Man and Harriet Potter visited with the lower school children during Monday Morning Meeting. Middle School students designed hero-inspired logos for their Reading Week T-shirts and Upper School students experimented with research tools during a visit to URI’s library and held Poetry Week at the Upper School.
Guest readers from the City and State legislature, PCS Board, and local commerce shared their love of reading and storytime with the younger children.
The Support Services Department at the Lower School sponsored a Family Math Literacy Night and Book Give-Away during which enthusiastic young readers and mathematicians played math and literacy games like Mancala, Dominoes and Yahtzee with volunteers from Brown University.
Students also selected one new and one gently used book from the book give-away. 5th grade helpers worked hard after school to set the book give-away up, and actively promoted the family buddy reading corner where families could pull aside for a quiet read together. A special Spanish book section was available for our Spanish speaking families, and young pre-school siblings walked away with a new book as well.
The whole school enjoyed an all-school read-in with their new books out on the turf in the afternoon, a quiet and reflective half hour to celebrate literacy and welcome the warm spring weather together as a community.
(top left) Washington Trust’s President and COO, Edward “Ned” Handy reads a story to third graders during Reading Week. (top right) PCS Juniors experimenting with research tools during a visit to URI’s library. (bottom) PCS middle schoolers combined art, graphic design and literary symbols as they designed logos for their Reading Week T-shirts. Pictured with principal Eric Charlesworth, librarian Jen Thomas and art teacher Amy Weigand, advisory winners display their masterpieces.