A need to read

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Local News

November 15, 2018 - 1:33 PM

The libraries at Iola’s elementary schools probably don’t sound like the libraries from generations past. You won’t find a stern librarian admonishing children with a hushed “Shhhh!” or students afraid to speak above a whisper.

Instead, there’s endless chatter with students talking about their favorite characters or comparing books. Adult volunteers and college students read aloud with dramatic flair. Students wander past the shelves and ask for recommendations.

Every morning, between 7:40 and 8:30 a.m. and again most afternoons, the Library Media Centers at McKinley and Jefferson schools become the hot spot for students in kindergarten to second grade. That’s where students know they can go to listen to an adult read a book, or enjoy one on their own.

“Learning is a social activity and libraries must become social places,” Tammy Prather, library media specialist, said.

The library’s transition to a hub of activity is just one of several changes Prather implemented after Iola’s elementary schools transitioned from neighborhood schools to grade-level attendance centers in 2015.

With all kindergarten students combined at McKinley, and grades one and two at Jefferson, she introduced a new culture aimed at developing not just a love of reading but a necessity for it.

Now, after a few years of practice, Prather shared some of her findings with USD 257 board members at their meeting Monday.

The results are impressive:

— One-hundred percent of kindergarten and first grade students, and 96 percent of second grade students met or exceeded reading goals in the first quarter of this year. That compares to 19 percent of kindergarteners who met the goal of reading 20 books at the same point in the fall of 2014 (the last year before the move to attendance centers). Just 61 percent of first-graders and 73 percent of second-graders met their goals in 2014.

— The average number of books read to kindergarten students each year is between 125 to 150.

— The average number of books read by first and second grade students each year is about 250. Some will read more than 400 books in a year.

— Each year, Iola’s K-2 students read a total of about 53,000 books. And, yes, those books must be shelved at the end of every day by library paraprofessionals Mona Melvin and MaryJo Dickerson.

“They’re checking out books on the very first day of school. They don’t know any other way,” Prather said. “We must teach them that reading is essential and just as important as brushing their teeth. It’s just what we do.”

 

PRATHER’S approach to reading doesn’t just affect school. Students are encouraged to read at home every night. For kindergarten and first grade students, that requires the help of an adult. Second grade students are becoming independent readers but still could use a little help from Mom or Dad, Prather said.

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