Jackson Public Schools is working hard to get students excited about reading.Friday afternoon, they hosted their annual reading fair at Cardozo Middle School. The school’s gym was crowded with parents, students and staff.They gathered to watch guest speakers, like the President Emeritus of Tougaloo College, Dr. Beverly Wade-Hogan. There were also performances by Bates Elementary cheerleaders and the Mother Goose Show Choir. The main event of the event was the reading board competition. Kids of all age groups were selected from schools across Jackson to present their favorite books and dress as up the character that resonates with them the most. Judges scanned the boards, ultimately deciding who would be chosen as the winner. Carli Ann Edmonds, an eighth grader, participated in the competition. Her focus was on the novel “The Hate U Give.” “I watched the movie ‘The Hate U Give’ before I read the book and it does talk about different things in the book than in the movie. The book did come out first. I feel like it’s important for you to read books because it shows you different perspectives of things than what you just see on TV,” Edmonds said. Edmonds said she was thankful to be selected and was pushing for first place in the competition. “One of my favorite reading gurus, Frank Smith, said you learn to read by reading. The more you read, the better you read. So, when we can capitalize off of that understanding by creating platforms and spaces like this. These are conditions beyond learning in the classroom. This celebrates that love for reading, the joy for reading and the art of reading, ” Samecia Stokes, the JPS Director of Library Services, said.Stokes says they hope this event continues to encourage younger generations to put their phones down and curl up with a book.
Jackson Public Schools is working hard to get students excited about reading.
Friday afternoon, they hosted their annual reading fair at Cardozo Middle School. The school’s gym was crowded with parents, students and staff.
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They gathered to watch guest speakers, like the President Emeritus of Tougaloo College, Dr. Beverly Wade-Hogan. There were also performances by Bates Elementary cheerleaders and the Mother Goose Show Choir.
The main event of the event was the reading board competition. Kids of all age groups were selected from schools across Jackson to present their favorite books and dress as up the character that resonates with them the most. Judges scanned the boards, ultimately deciding who would be chosen as the winner.
Carli Ann Edmonds, an eighth grader, participated in the competition. Her focus was on the novel “The Hate U Give.”
“I watched the movie ‘The Hate U Give’ before I read the book and it does talk about different things in the book than in the movie. The book did come out first. I feel like it’s important for you to read books because it shows you different perspectives of things than what you just see on TV,” Edmonds said.
Edmonds said she was thankful to be selected and was pushing for first place in the competition.
“One of my favorite reading gurus, Frank Smith, said you learn to read by reading. The more you read, the better you read. So, when we can capitalize off of that understanding by creating platforms and spaces like this. These are conditions beyond learning in the classroom. This celebrates that love for reading, the joy for reading and the art of reading, ” Samecia Stokes, the JPS Director of Library Services, said.
Stokes says they hope this event continues to encourage younger generations to put their phones down and curl up with a book.
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