Schools

Students Read for a Record, Promote Literacy

Flocktown-Kossmann joins worldwide initiative.

When you’re in kindergarten, first or second grade, wearing pajamas and reading a fun book is a great time.

Now imagine doing it at school, with all your friends, and in the end, you’ve helped raise money for schools or children who can’t afford new books.

That’s exactly what took place at Flocktown-Kossmann School on Thursday, Oct. 6. as 251 Kossmann and 305 Flocktown students simultaneously read “Llama Llama Red Pajama” by Anna Dewdney in hopes of breaking last year’s record and raising funds for Read for the Record. All while wearing their pajamas.

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Last year, 2,057,000 students worldwide read the same book on the same day, setting a world record, and the Flocktown-Kossmann students hoped to do the same on Thursday, according to Literary Instructor Meg DeFrance.

As the students at Kossmann School gathered in the all-purpose room, music teacher Patricia Hill led the group in a song about Llama Llama Red Pajama while strumming a guitar.

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“This is a worldwide event,” said DeFrance to the room of children before she began reading the story. “By us reading this book together, we’re going to help put new books in the library.”

DeFrance then read the book aloud to the room full of children as well as parents and grandparents who attended, and followed a slide show of the illustrations on a projection screen.

After the reading was complete, the students headed back to their classrooms for a follow up activity.

The book’s premise was about a baby llama that had trouble falling asleep and called for its mother, seeking reassurance.

Students in Michelle Brueggeman’s second grade class were asked to draw a picture and write about what they believe their mothers do once the kids are off to sleep.

Drawings of mothers watching TV and sitting in front of the computer were abundant, while others explained that mom sometimes has to watch younger children in the family or does laundry or washes the dishes.

Keving Young, one of Brueggeman’s students, thought wearing his pajamas was the best part of the day.

“It’s so cool!” Young said, wearing a pants and shirt combo that had skeletons donning sunglasses on them. “I didn’t wear these to bed–I have different (pajamas) for that. But I like these ones too.”

The Read for the Record program can be found online at www.readfortherecord.org where donations can be made to the cause.


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