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“Get In Touch With Your Emotions,” based on the children’s’ movie “Inside Out” was the theme of the March 20th through March 24th Perkins School Reading Week that featured lots of fun activities built around social emotional learning for Pre-K through second grade learners to participate in.
Each day had a reading or emotions theme and children, on March 20th and 22nd children were encouraged to dress like their favorite superhero and book chararacter, respectively, and on March 21, 23, and 24, to wear colors indicative of the various emotions being focused on throughout the week were joy, sadness, anger, disgust and fear.
Also during the week there was a door decorating contest and bulletin board displays pertaining to reading or emotions themes held throughout the school. Chelsea Powell’s first grade classroom door was the winner. See it immediately to the right.
On March 22nd, guest children’s book author and bookstore owner Julie Berry visited the school, read to UPK students in the library as well as Kindergarteners; led three assembly presentations, conducted a Question-and Answer session with 1st graders, and facilitated an interactive creative activity with 2nd graders whereby they created creatures they would see on their own “night frolic,” based on Julie Berry’s new book “The Night Frolic.”
A generous grant paid for a Scholastic book for each Perkins student, while the PTA and Student Activity funds also paid for a book by Berry for each Perkins classroom.
"I love visiting schools. It’s something I especially missed during the COVID years _ because it’s my best chance to interact with the people I write for. And the students are so sweet. If I can inspire them to see themselves as future creators, I’m thrilled to have that chance. Perkins showed me a truly warm and enthusiastic welcome! The teachers were dynamic and had prepared their students well. Ms. Trevvett orchestrated a full day of enrichment and presentations that got students imagining, creating, and having fun with stories. It was a delight to be here,” Berry said at the end of her day at Perkins.
Perkins School children were also read to on Monday and Tuesday of Reading Week by guest readers including Superintendent Susan Hasenauer, Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction Krista Lewis, Secretary to Superintendent/Data Coordinator Stacy Warren, Secretary to the Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction/Assistant Data Coordinator Sara Finch, Board of Education member Julie Nevelizer, Newark Central School District Human Resources Executive Director Dan McAlpin, Personnel Assistant Susan Carr, Kelley School Principal Jeff Hamelinck, Sue Moak, retired Perkins physical education teacher, Newark Central School District School Resource Officer Kevin Vaughn, Newark Police Chief Richard Martin, Newark Mayor Jonathan Taylor and other Perkins staff.
The main goal of Reading Week is to promote and build upon the love of reading among students and their families, the goal was to have Perkins School students read 1000 books and they met that goal with 1,017 books read! As a celebration, classes had a popcorn party and watched “Inside Out.”
Before Reading Week, students were also asked to make bookmarks about emotions. The winning bookmark was made by first grader Corey DiMura. For his win, he received a book about dinosaurs, a coloring book, and a self-coloring activity. Honorable mention was also given to second graders, Harper Colling, and Graham Ford, for which they also received book bundles. Copies of his bookmark have been given to all the children in the school.
A Scholastic Book Fair was also held during the day March 20-23 at the school in the LGI and during Literacy Night March 23rd in the gymnasium. Also that evening, six different social-emotional-based activity stations were set up on the first floor for children and their families to participate in.
Books were raffled off during the evening. Pizza and water were provided by Novem Group in Rochester. About 300 attended the event.
Reading Week was planned by a committee of teachers and other staff including: Reading teachers Meaghan Trevvett, Danielle Watt and Jeannine King, as well as Reading Department Teaching Assistant, Cari Taylor; Building Substitute Kelly Puckett; Pre-K teachers Jill Manuel and Teaching Assistant Michele Renzi, Kindergarten teachers Kelly Faust and Mary Ciulla; first grade teacher Amanda Quku; second grade teachers Olivia Reho, Sara Beth Stachura and Jessica McNabb, and ENL teacher Henrietta Binda, School Social Worker Chelsea Shaw and Perkins Principal Pete Czerkas and Assistant Principal Mary Kate Wilbert, with the support of many other staff including Perkins School Secretary Maria Bremer, Roxanne Ellersick and Jodi Jandreau, and Maintenance staff Justin Foster, John Benne, Roxanne Peters, A/V and Social Media Coordinator Kyle Bliek, Secretary to the Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction Sara Finch, Secretary to the Innovative and Grant Services Department Harley Seager, Julie Blackall and the PTA, and NEC secretary Yvonne Pryor.