Schools
1,000 Books Project Feeds Children’s Love of Reading
Four Ossining elementary school students were recognized Dec. 9 for reaching the milestone.
Many people may associate the COVID-19 pandemic with binge-watching television shows and movies on streaming services. Others have buried themselves in books.
Four elementary school students in Ossining have joined the ranks of binge-readers by completing the Ossining Staff Development Center’s 1,000 Books Project. The Board of Education recently recognized them for this achievement.
“There’s a quote that’s going around lately that’s being shared in these times: Reading gives us someplace to go when we have to stay where we are,” teacher Mary Catherine Hillman, Staff Development Center director, said at the Dec. 9 Board of Education virtual meeting.
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The awardees were Isabella Valler (pre-kindergarten); Aiden Sherman, who is 4; Julia Grullon (first grade); and Keshar Borse (kindergarten). They received an award certificate, T-shirt and a book from the center.
“These families have been on a reading journey for quite some time and I know that this is just the beginning of a long journey and reading life for these wonderful children,” Ms. Hillman said.
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The Ossining Public Library helps the children and their families read and log 1,000 books of their choice and also honors them upon completion.
“That’s a lot of books and that’s amazing,” Board of Education President Lisa Rudley said at the meeting. “I know so many of our students are doing a lot of reading and it’s just really great to make that milestone.”
Charisse Vallar, Isabella’s mother, said participating in the 1,000 Books Project has been a wonderful experience. Isabella, who is in pre-kindergarten, is interested in learning phonetics, rhyming words, spelling three-letter words and attempting to read simple phrases on her own.
“The habit of visiting the library frequently for storytime, playtime, borrowing books plus accomplishing the 1,000 Books Project had indeed sparked so much fascination for her to learn early without any pressure/burden,” Ms. Vallar wrote in a note to Ms. Hillman. “At bedtime, she stacks all the books she wants me to read to her and now she stacks the books she wants/attempts to read on her own. I’m so grateful and proud.”
