Remember when you officially became a reader? Kindergartners at Lakeside Elementary do, because their school hosts a parade in their honor to mark the milestone.
For the fourth year, kindergarten teachers Renee Rowan, Hannah Tobin and Shannon Brady and their classroom assistants organized the We Are Readers parade. The hand-slapping, cheer-raising 5-minute route through Lakeside Elementary hallways and along the sidewalk in front of the school celebrates completion of the first Units of Study for Teaching Reading.
“At the end of the unit we feel certain that we have sparked in our kinders a love of reading and a confidence that they absolutely are readers,” Tobin said. “Having the entire school come out of the halls cheering them on supports our youngest readers and shows them that reading is so valued. (The parade) is just magic.”
Second graders Grant Camfferman and Lily Lothschutz were part of the hallway cheering section. Both took part in the parade when they were in kindergarten, wearing headbands with their favorite storybook title and holding those books high.
“I was thinking how happy I was,” Lily said.
“I remember when I read those books when I was in kindergarten,” Grant recalled.
With a couple grades now under their belts, Lily and Grant’s advice to their younger peers: “It gets challenging,” Lily said. Added Grant: “When you get older it will get easier. Keep practicing.”
