Dawn Baird
Published: March 8, 2006
The afternoon was filled with cookie-crumb smiles, milk mustaches, and Cat in the Hat.
In honor of Theodore Seuss Geisel, a famous American writer and cartoonist best known for his Dr. Seuss books, PJC’s Education Club and the Education Honor Society Kappa Delta Pi co-sponsored a reading event March 2 at the PJC Child Care Center.
Nearly reaching their goal of 50, the Education department collected a total of 47 Dr. Seuss books in addition to cash donations.
Members Danielle Gruden, Jim Adams, and Ann Mc Gowan read to children; Christine Hodges, who worked with the Read Across America program last year, and future math teacher Judy Seales, also helped.
Jill Hubbs from WEAR TV joined in the fun; the children’s faces lit up when she walked into their classrooms wearing a Cat in the Hat costume complete with a red bowtie, red and white striped hat, white gloves, whiskers and tail.
“Most schools honor Dr. Seuss on his birthday. There’s no better way to do that than on our own campus. It’s a good way to give back to our school and support their programs,” Gruden said.
Children come into the world ready to learn. Research from the U.S. Dept of Education shows when children are given the opportunity to listen and use language early, they gain the necessary building blocks to learn how to read.
“Reading to children builds a love of reading at an early age that continues throughout their lives,” Sheila Banks, director of the child care center, said. “Books are everything. Reading to a child teaches him listening skills, patience, and language skills. We always welcome volunteers to share with the children.”
Assistant Director Jessica Hallford agreed, “We start them with books when they’re infants because reading is so important.”
The National Assessment of Adult Literacy study states, “As many as 93 million adults don’t have the literacy skills necessary to function well in today’s society. In other words, if you can’t read, you won’t succeed.”
“Its up to us to make sure our children can read, write, spell and pronounce words correctly,” states the Child Development Institute.
The Education department at PJC is motivating young children to enjoy reading. With these early influences, the children will be more likely to read at an early age and secure a successful future education.