Read Across America, a nationally recognized initiative of the National Education Association, came to Kukui Grove Center Saturday as a collaborative partnership among Hawai‘iUSA Federal Credit Union, Kaua‘i Family and Community Education, Kumu’s Cupboard, USBorne Books and more, the Showtime Characters and others.
A steady stream of shoppers, many being accompanied by keiki, capitalized on the event promoting literacy and focusing on getting adults to read to children.
“You get a certificate for a free book from the USBorne Books offering,” said Morgan Lopez of Hawai‘iUSA FCU. “If you take the Spring Reading Challenge, when you complete the challenge you get another certificate for another free book.”
The Spring Reading Challenge is the connector that ties Read Across America to March being recognized as National Reading Month, in recognition of Dr. Seuss’ birthday.
An informal calendar printed on the back of the Spring Reading Challenge offered a preview of upcoming events and activities for March at KGC, where spring break will be celebrated Saturday with the Spring Break Family Fun Day. One of the activities taking place between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. is the distribution of the popular ocean grab-and-go learning kits in front of Kaua‘i Ocean Discovery. The fun day will run until 3 p.m.
“This is on the tail end of Read Across America,” said Melissa McFerrin-Warrack of KGC. “Dr. Seuss’s birthday and National Read Across America was on March 2. But there is spring break coming up, and a lot of other festivities for the month. We can use Read Across America as a sneak peek into what’s coming up.”
Keiki and their parents seemed more occupied with shopping for books spread out on tables spanning the back of the food court stage as a fundraiser for Kumu’s Cupboard, an educator resource center where teachers shop free.
“What are we going to do with these big-boy books?” Bev Pang, volunteering with the KFCE group, said. “These aren’t kiddie books.”
Sheila Bradley of USBorne Book and more had the answer when the appearance of Winnie the Pooh and Tigger distracted the book-shoppers.
“I can take them,” Bradley said. “My sons read those kinds of book. They don’t care. They just want fat books, the fatter the better.”
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Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 245-0453 or dfujimoto@thegardenisland.com.
Source: The Garden Island
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