ITEM PHOTO BY OWEN O’ROURKE
Linda Gaieski reads “Green Eggs and Ham” to members of a second-grade class at the Oaklandvale Elementary School.
By THOMAS GRILLO
SAUGUS — It wasn’t Christmas or her birthday, but Thursday was one of Lola West-Keaney’s favorite days of the year.
The second-grader at the Oaklandvale Elementary School and her classmates were treated to a reading of “Green Eggs and Ham” and “One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish,” the Dr. Seuss classics guaranteed to bring smiles.
“It’s fun,” said Lola. “I love being read to, this a special day.”
The event, National Read Across America Day, is celebrated nationwide annually on March 2, Dr. Seuss’ birthday. At Oaklandvale, nearly three dozen visitors, including school committee members and Saugus High School students, read aloud to students for 90 minutes in the K-5 school.
“We read daily, but today we really celebrate reading,” said Teddi Zeboski, Lola’s teacher. “Reading is the key to everything.”
School Committee member Linda Gaieski, a former teacher, who chose the Seuss books, said it was important for her to be part of the event.
“Coming into the classroom and seeing the expressions on their faces and letting them know they’re important is key for me,” she said.
https://newitemlive.wpengine.com/news/cook-off-to-help-fund-sergeants-run/
Down the hall, Peter Manoogian, a school committeeman, read portions of “Who Moved My Cheese?” to Danielle Lindquist’s fifth-graders. Spencer Johnson’s classic uses a simple story to help readers deal with change.
Manoogian said he chose the book because these students will be facing a new experience in the fall when they move on to middle school.
“It’s the perfect book for what these students are about to face when they go to a new school and it’s appropriate for their age,” he said. “There’s always going to be change, you shouldn’t be surprised or fearful of it.”
Sarah Dorielan, a fifth-grader, said the book was very encouraging.
“It shows that you can stay where you are if you want to improve, but it also shows that you can do something different without fear,” she said.
In Cary Short’s second grade classroom, Liz Schirripa, a 17-year-old junior at Saugus High, said she loved the idea of reading aloud to the students and jumped at the chance.
The class was mesmerized by Dr. Seuss’s “Oh, the Thinks You Can Think” which celebrates the imagination and encourages young readers to think … about thinking.
“They loved the Dr. Seuss book, they loved looking at the pictures and asked so many questions, it was really cute,” she said.
Eric Jones, Oaklandvale’s principal, said the school prepared for Read Across America Day by decorating the doors to each classroom with an author or a book of their choosing.
“This day is an added benefit because most classrooms already have a designated time for choice reading,” he said.
Thomas Grillo can be reached at [email protected].