Friday, March 29, 2024

Literacy program arrives at Centre Hall Elementary

CENTRE HALL — There was a high level of excitement on Feb. 3 in the Centre Hall Elementary School.
In the days prior, a large wrapped box in the corner of the cafeteria had invited speculation about its contents. The teachers kept up the suspense by guessing what might be in the box as they began morning announcements. Friday arrived and the first group of students — in prekindergarten, kindergarten and first grade — crowded into the cafeteria to see the unveiling.

Various guesses were solicited from the assembly. Some kids thought it might be an ice cream machine, while others hoped for a Burger King drive-through window. A couple of students thought it might be a portal to anywhere, or even a dunking machine for the principal.

Finally, three children were chosen by Principal David Romanyshyn to begin tearing off the paper surrounding the unknown surprise.

The room erupted with cheers as a large vending machine filled with books came into view. Students will be able to exchange Ram Stars earned through their School Wide Positive Behavior system for a token that allows them to get a book to keep from the machine.

This machine and the books to fill it were donated and will be in place in Centre Hall for the rest of the school year. Penny Eifrig, executive director of the nonprofit Random Acts of Reading (RoAR) literacy program, provided the books.
The machine was placed in Centre Hall through the generosity of Ron and Sue Smith of Lemont. The side of the machine features a dedication to the Smiths.
The Golden Ticket to Literacy program costs around $11,000 and includes a vending machine and 300 books to fill it.
Eifrig has been working to bring quality books and author events to children for many years. In 2015, she created the nonprofit RoAR. During the COVID pandemic, she donated free books to accompany free school lunch programs. With her heart and head occupied with ways of bringing literacy to all children, it is no wonder she dreamed about a program she could create.

Her dream grew into The Golden Ticket to Literacy, and Centre Hall Elementary is the first school anywhere in the world to launch this exact program. There are enough books loaded in the machine to provide a free book for each child in the school.

Special education teacher Kelly Corneal, along with reading specialist Kathryn “Kathy” Smaniotto, were instrumental in bringing the program to Centre Hall.

“A lot of the characters represent the lives of our students, and our students can see themselves in a book,” Smaniotto said.  “The books open up opportunities that they haven’t experienced yet.”
“I hope this kick-off will generate excitement and interest in the community,” said Romanyshyn. “I am so grateful that Penny reached out and said she was going to lend this to us and donate books.”

After the exciting unveiling, William Weaver (kindergarten), Misha Webb (first grade) and Diana Claros (prekindergarten) were chosen to be the first to receive books from the vending machine. Others also had the necessary 75 Ram Stars and will be able to get their books at a later time.

Asked about the way Ram Stars can be earned, William said, “You need to be ready, responsible and respectful.” These are the three R’s that children try to live out to earn their Ram Stars.

When it was time to put his token into the machine, William insisted that Misha go first. Misha quickly put in his token and received a book about dragons. He said he picked that book because of its cover and because he loves dragons. William then chose “Sam & Sadie Super Sleuths,” a detective book. 

 William said, “They are following each other’s footprints,” as he traced the footprints featured on the cover. 

The machine was rewrapped for the second group of students from second, third and fourth grades. Annelise Snyder (second grade), Nathan Houtz (third grade) and Kensley Praskovich (fourth grade) were called to the front of the room by Romanyshyn to choose their books.

Eifrig, joining the students for pictures by the machine, asked what they liked about the books and reading. Annelise said, “I like reading because it gives me something to do other than yell at my brothers.”

“I like dogs, so I thought this was cool,” said Kensley while showing her book, “Snout Vs. Snowman.”

Nathan Houtz said his favorite part of reading was that “when I am bored, I can grab a book and it entertains me for a while.” His book contained a coupon for a special party for his class. That was a big hit among his classmates.

Some of the books in the machine contain tickets or coupons for special privileges such as wearing a hat in the building, sitting in the principal’s chair for the day, sitting at a special table with friends at lunch or getting an ice cream treat. The big prize, however, is the golden ticket that is inside one book in the machine. When that is found, the whole school will receive a virtual author visit, and every student will take home a copy of the book.

It is hoped that the increased interest in reading will also create a desire within the students to write their own books. Through The Golden Ticket to Literacy program, students can enter their stories in the YACK (Young Authors-Creative Kids) contest. Winners will have their books placed in a digital library, available for everyone to read. Virtual meet-the-author events are made available as well as access to Readeo.com, where parents and others may help by reading to a class from anywhere.

Eifrig said, “This is an excellent chance for civic groups and individuals to donate to the cause of literacy — by helping to place the machine in other schools.”
To learn more about the program, go to randomactsofreading.org.