Belmont held its annual Family Literacy Day at Rose Park on April 6. Nearly 200 volunteers came together for a total of 596 service hours in order to make the day a success.
Book’em, one of the event’s 19 sponsors, donated 500 books and packets of parent resource literature. Children had the opportunity to select a certain number of books based on their participation in day’s events.
Inside of the Easley Community Center, snacks and crafts were available for the children. There, participants were also able to register and receive a gift bag which included a free book. Resources were parents were also available.
Outdoors, on the softball field, the children were able to participate in games and reading circles. In the reading circles, students read to children and also encouraged the children to read to them. Each child was awarded one sticker for every circle they participated in and was able to redeem his stickers for up to two more books. Each of the 25 reading circles was unique with its own theme, which included dragons, princesses, and Dr. Seuss.
The event also included a raffle and an award ceremony. Prior to the event, elementary school students from local area schools were encouraged to participate in Family Literacy Day’s 4th Annual poetry contest. The submitted poems were judged by the English Club and faculty, which select the top five. Each of the finalists worked with local songwriters to write and record a song based on their poem. The songs are then played on Family Literacy Day, and a final winner was selected through participant voting.
Over 150 children and parents, participated in the event. They were encouraged to continue reading outside of school, in order to foster stronger learning and relationships.
