Pajama Party To Open Alcott Read-a-Thon

Five-hundred-twenty-five thousand’s how many pages, how many pages Alcott will read.

If that doesn’t get Rent's "Seasons of Love” stuck in your head, hopefully it will at least help you appreciate what Alcott Elementary School is trying to accomplish in the read-a-thon starting today, March 1.

The read-a-thon, an annual event for Alcott, kicks off from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. tonight with an evening family event featuring a book fair and pajama party at the elementary school on Laurel Street. The book fair will be held in the hallway, while the gymnasium will serve as a silent reading room where a few special guest readers are expected to make an appearance.

The theme for this year’s Alcott read-a-thon is “Once Upon a Read-a-Thon,” according to Tracey Marano, a parent volunteer who was involved in planning and promoting the event.

The start of the Alcott read-a-thon, like many reading initiatives it its kind, coincides with the March 2 birthday Dr. Seuss. And the overall goal is to get kids excited about reading.

“It’s really to motivate kids to read, because reading and literacy are so important – especially early reading and literacy,” said Marano. “The most important thing about it is that everybody does it, and that there’s 100 percent participation.”

To that end, all kinds of reading will count toward the goal – school assignments, reading for pleasure, in-class readings, books on tape, iPads, iPods, Kindles and every other kind.

The Alcott Read-a-Thon will take place from Friday, March 1 through Friday, March 22.