Hawley Students Kick Off School-Wide Reading Program

By Eliza Hallabeck

Students from each grade at Hawley School assembled together in the gym to hear the answer to a long-awaited secret; what book will they be reading for this year’s One School, One Read?

As the fifth book chosen in the school’s history of the program, this year’s book was described to the students with a short skit performed by teachers, decorations in the lobby of the school and with an introduction from Hawley School Principal Jo-Ann Peters.

“[The book] has been a secret,” said Carolyn Faxon, co-chair for the event, which is sponsored by the Parent Teacher Association at Hawley. “They try not to let anybody know.”

As students continued to enter the gym, the loud noise of excitement was evident from the students.

“This is a great book,” said Ms Faxon, “because it has a lot to do with the farm and friendship.”

Each year the PTA buys the books for the school, and each student, teacher, staff member, and family member associated with the school reads the book during one month. Other schools in the district have their own One School, One Read programs, but Hawley School’s is the first one of this school year.

“I know you are excited,” said Ms Peters to the students once they had been settled down, “and we want you to be excited.”

Ms Peters asked for a volunteer fourth grade student to explain to the rest of the school what the One School, One Read means to them, and a student raised her hand and said it meant the entire school and families will read the book chosen for that school year’s One School, One Read.

After Ms Peters gave a quick introduction and asked the students for their best behavior, teachers dressed as characters from this year’s book walked out onto the stage, which had been decorated for the occasion to resemble a barnyard.

 “Today we are going to show you through a skit what our One School, One Read book is,” said Ms Peters.

One teacher was dressed as a pink pig, one had rat ears and a tail, and another teacher was dressed as a goose.

Wilbur from E.B. White’s Charlotte’s Web came to life in front of the students. Wilbur, a pig who becomes upset when he learns the fate of most pigs on a farm, befriends a spider in his pig pen, and learns about friendship when the spider attempts to save him from his fate.

Discussion questions are being sent home to parents to help the students learn more about the book, and activities and discussions will also happen in the classroom for students.

 The PTA bought 400 books to distribute to the school, and by the end of the day on Monday, one child from each family received a book to be brought home.

The One School, One Read program will end on October 31 with another schoolwide assembly that may include special activities to celebrate the book.

One School, One Read book end celebrations in the past have included watching the movie adaptation and dressing up like the characters from the book.

Through the efforts of Ms Faxon and Kris Cotton, her co-chair for the program, the school will be decorated for the month depending on what chapter the students are reading in the book. The book has been broken down to a timeline of chapters, so each student will be reading Charlotte’s Web at the same speed.

“We can’t give [the story] away too fast,” said Ms Faxon. “So we can’t put up the decorations until the kids are done with the chapters.”