Local families packed the Hawthorne Elementary Auditorium for Literacy Night, held on Thursday, Nov. 17, as a creative idea and collaboration of efforts. Mary Koscinski, from the Mineral County Adult Education and Principal Stephanie Kuehey arranged a night of nachos, reading and free books which were funded by Koscinski’s project.
Over 320 books were individually preordered, bagged and presented to the students which attended. The teachers from Hawthorne Elementary played an important role as they assisted in the appropriate choices for all the students and some were on hand to assist in the distribution.
School district counselor, John Gavin took the stage dressed in his Dr. Seuss hat with a smile. He gave a back-story to the audience that his favorite book had been “Fox in Socks” by Dr. Seuss and it had become his daughter’s favorite book as he read it to her. With that introduction he then read the tricky, poetically-rhymed sentences to the students, as the kids promptly took to the floor with a story time expectation.
Rocket tickets previously sold over many weeks were finally drawn. This fundraiser was to create funding for the purchase of incentives in the Rocket Store and special program costs. Shaylee Gavin was the first winner, choosing the Rocket Basket and Lori Lightfoot was drawn as the winner of the Book Basket.
This promotion was considered a success to emphasize early literacy, family involvement and the fun of reading to children. Studies show that young children that are read to will develop a quick response in learning letters and words in school. The platform for a continued effort of this kind will be repeated at the Schurz Elementary School after the holidays.
If anyone in the community would like to know more about participating in this program or Adult Education, or have a desire to obtain a GED – General Education Certificate or Secondary Educational assistance, please contact Mary Koscinski at 775-945-2909. Call for hours and an appointment.
