Books Make New Buddies For Students At Hawley

By Eliza Hallabeck

Tears were shed at Hawley School this week as the Senior Book Buddies Club neared the end of its page-turning tale.

Over the past school year the 25 students in Lea Attanasio’s fourth grade class have been sharing their reading experience with six seniors, from both the Newtown Senior Center and The Village at Brookfield Common, every other week. This week’s meeting was the last official Senior Book Buddies Club gathering. They will be meeting one more time on June 10 for a pizza party at The Village at Brookfield Common.

The Senior Book Buddies Club was a new experiment this year, and Ms Attanasio, who is also a Newtown resident, said she does not want it to end.

“This whole thing started last summer,” Ms Attanasio said. “I was really thinking about what I could do that would be meaningful and worthwhile.”

In the project description for the club, Ms Attanasio wrote, “I wanted them to be able to read, comprehend and discuss some of these books as an add-on to what our curriculum covers.”

Ms Attanasio said she reached out to the Newtown Senior Center and asked if there would be anyone willing to participate in the reading group with the students. She said the response was positive.

While she was explaining the concept of the Senior Book Buddies Club to her students, Amanda Albanesi volunteered her mother to help. Marcie Albanesi, the executive director of The Village at Brookfield Common, said her daughter came home that day and said, “Mom, I said you could bring your seniors.”

Ms Albanesi said she or someone else from The Village at Brookfield Common drives the seniors to their meeting with the students, and normally she is the person driving. After her daughter came home excited for the Senior Book Buddies Club to include seniors from her mother’s work, Ms Albanesi said it was easy to get seniors excited to volunteer.

“We just went back to the Village and talked about the book club, and these three instantly wanted to do it,” Ms Albanesi said regarding Philip Michel, Mildred Meyer, and Helen Waldman, who have all been constants at the meetings.

The first meeting in early October, according to Ms Attanasio, went incredibly well. The students left excited after Ms Attanasio gave a small explanation of each of the books. The 25 students were broken down into groups of five to six and each group was assigned a senior.

The groups read a book a month, and at their bimonthly meetings they discussed what they thought of the books. Ms Attanasio said parents of the students got involved with reading the books as well.

“We pretty much read every night,” Ms Albanesi said as a parent for one of the students in the club.

During the last meeting the students broke up into their groups eagerly after a brief PowerPoint presentation that Ms Attanasio had put together to thank the seniors for their presentation during the school year. The presentation also counted the top reasons for being in the Senior Book Buddies Club. Among the reasons were the six seniors and having the ability to read books.

“You know, you all did a great job,” said Phil Michel, one of the seniors from the Village at Brookfield Common, to his group of readers. “I think I have learned more than you did. I learned what fourth graders are like.”

The group was busy discussing The Sister’s Grimm, by Michael Buckley. The novel, the first in a series, is about two sisters who get swept into a family legacy. Their ancestor, Wilhelm Grimm, brought the Fairy Tale creatures here, and now only his descendents can keep them in line.

“It is really fun to see what other people have to say,” said Emma Wolfman, a student who has been participating in the Senior Book Buddies Club, “and to read really good books.”

Mr Michel, who is a sculptor, said being in the Senior Book Buddies Club this past year was a great experience.

“It’s the greatest pleasure I have ever had,” said Mr Michel.

At the end of the meeting the six participating seniors were given a chance to say a quick thank you. The real goodbye will be done at the pizza party at the Village at Brookfield Commons, but every one of the six seniors had positive things to say.

“I enjoyed being here,” said Mr Michel between tears, “and I love you all.”

Ms Attanasio said she was thankful for the participation the club has received from all of the members.

“I don’t think there are other fourth grade students, there may be some, that have really read and thought about good literature,” said Ms Attanasio. “And I am really proud of that.”