DeKalb West School Throws a Big Reading Party

Mary Poppins, The Cat in the Hat, Thing One and Thing Two, and even Moses turned out to DeKalb West School for a big reading party for the community. The first-ever Family Literacy Night on Tuesday brought in parents, students, and other people across the county to celebrate reading.
“I was elated by the way families turned out, the community support that we had, and the way the children were behaving, enjoying, learning, and loving everything that they saw,” said DWS Librarian Amanda Mullinax, who spearheaded the event.
Children’s author Michael Shoulders, who read and entertained the children, encouraged parents to make reading fun and turn it into a family affair.
“I don’t think they should look at their kid and say, ‘You’re supposed to read 20 minutes,” Shoulders said. “Get in your room right now and read 20 minutes, and if I come in there, you better be reading. That’s the wrong approach. It should not be a chore. It should be fun. Let me read it with you. It’s about celebrating books and having fun with them. That’s why I throw in a magic trip or a throw in a rap. I want them to think I had a good time with books.”
During the two-hour event, families put stakes down at Camp Read S’More, hung out with Pete the Cat, went on a different version of a cake walk with literacy as the theme, explored hidden gems in a treasure chest, checked out their children’s Literacy Fair projects, and of course, read together.
“I would say it’s important to come out to something like this to show the children that reading, writing, and anything literacy related is just as important as anything else that we can go and do for fun, like go to the movies or go shopping or go to a sporting event,” added Mullinax.
“I think the most important thing that you could take away from tonight is what we have been promoting all year long,” Mullinax adds. “We’ve been calling it the “20 for 20″ program. He didn’t call it a program. He just said it needs to be part of our daily life and twenty minutes a day doing something where your child is interacting with reading and you are too as a family. I just think that’s very important.”