St. James Elementary Kicks Off PARP in Hip Fashion

St. James Elementary School kicked off this year’s Parents as Reading Partners celebration by welcoming the arts-in-education percussion duo Hip Pickles.

This award-winning interactive program incorporated music, movement and motivation to bring out some of the fun in reading.

Along with hammering away on various types of drums in the school’s all-purpose room, Hip Pickles also emphasized the importance of reading by sharing their favorite books and discussing why they are so meaningful. Students were invited to the front to discuss their favorite books, play instruments and dance to the beats. The entertaining educators even took the time to memorize and lead students in the recital of the St. James Elementary School song.

Hip Pickles was made possible by the St. James Elementary School PTA, which has scheduled a series of fun, family-oriented activities to inspire children to read during the two-week PARP celebration. One follow-up activity is a guest reader day in which various professionals from the community will stop by the school to read to the children in their classrooms. A parent PARP night is also scheduled for next week, equipped with a DJ.

With this year’s theme of “Reading Rocks,” music is being used to help promote reading. St. James students are pledging to read at home with their families for a minimum of 20 minutes per night with a school-wide goal of 160,000 minutes read during the two-week celebration.

PARP is a national, PTA-sponsored effort to inspire children to continue reading at home to supplement school reading programs. It is designed to help children to discover that reading can be fun as well as informative, while strengthening the bond between home, school and community. It also provides parents with information to help their children become better readers by sharing the reading experience together.

Photo courtesy of the Smithtown Central School District