Summer Program Virtually Connects Levittown Readers

Press release from Levittown Public Schools:

Aug. 27, 2020

Each summer, students from the Levittown Public Schools participate in an
engaging reading program called the district’s Summer Reading Extravaganza. Despite the
COVID-19 pandemic, the program continued this summer in a virtual format to promote
literacy in the community and give students and faculty a shared reading experience.

Levittown students entering fifth grade read “The Kid Who Ran for President” by
Dan Gutman as part of a community-wide summer reading project. Students and their
families were encouraged to visit the Levittown elementary summer reading program
website which provided supplemental activities that parents could do with their children,
interactive games for students and some information on the election process.

Middle school students entering grades 6-8 read “Pay It Forward” by Catherine Ryan
Hyde and had the opportunity to register for one of three summer reading discussion days
through the Levittown Public Library’s website. Through the video conferencing platform
Zoom, students interacted with their peers, librarians, Director of ELA Kerin Slattery and
teachers from Jonas E. Salk Middle School and Wisdom Lane Middle School. Although they
could not physically be together to share their questions and thoughts about the book like
in previous summers, the students had virtual discussions about “Pay It Forward,”
participated in games and had a chance to enter a virtual raffle.

“The students seemed to love the Zoom events,” said Mrs. Slattery. “It was
heartwarming to have so many kids join us. Even virtual, summer reading is a success!”

In addition, the middle school students were encouraged to visit the summer
reading extravaganza website to contribute to a blog about the book, engage in a Pay it
Forward Challenge, complete activities and more for extra raffle tickets. Thirty raffle
participants from each middle school will be randomly selected for a meet-and-greet
experience with Richard Specht from the “Cultivating Kindness” program and receive a
special message from their summer reading book author, Catherine Ryan Hyde, at some
point during the 2020-2021 school year.

This press release was produced by Levittown Public Schools. The views expressed here are the author's own.