Readers Are Leaders
Readers are Leaders is a program run by Mrs. Mink, that inspires the younger children in the elementary building to want to read. Kids in the Jr. High building sign up for this program, and once per nine weeks they go read to the little kids from kindergarten all the way to second grade. The Jr. High kids have a book that they read to the younger ones, each grade has a different book. They then pick a teacher’s classroom that they want to read to. We interviewed three kids in ninth grade; Hannah Lewis, Seth Harmon, and Elizabeth Maupin. They all said that they felt joy reading to the younger kids and they hope this program inspires them to want to read. When these three kids that we interviewed were younger, they said they had people read to them. This later helped them want to read more.
When we went to the elementary to get footage of the Jr. High kids reading to the elementary, we interviewed a teacher and a couple of students. Mrs. Reesa, the teacher we interviewed, said that after the kids in the program come to read to them, she can see improvement in their learning skills and attitude towards reading. She loves when the older kids come read to her class because she can see the enjoyment on their faces. The younger kids already look up the Jr. High kids, and want to be like them when they get older. After the junior high kids read to them, a note is given to the students that has to be signed by their parents to help insure their reading habits. The note said that the students would promise to read every single night. The teachers would then give the students a Readers Are Leaders bracelet that is matching with the reader that came to their classroom. By Emma Williams, Izzy Marino, and Rylee Thomason
Got Books?
As we all know, last year the school administration brought the long-running Accelerated Reader program to a close; our joy was short lived. This year, a new reading program has been set in place, the Independent Reading Program, or IRP. It’s comparable to the AR program in many ways and it feels like the same old system that’s just been tweaked a little bit. The IPR goal is only 15 points and 15% of our overall grades, 7.5% dedicated to getting your goal and another 7.5% dedicated to comprehension. If you don’t reach the full goal, the only way to earn a grade for your comprehension will be to have at least 70%, which would be 10.5 points. Not getting the score might seem appealing if you have a severe case of senioritis or even if you’re just a procrastinator, but although it’s only 15% of your overall grade, not getting the goal could still hurt your GPA. Focusing on the senioritis again, one of the only downsides of this program to cause students irritation is that unlike previous years, seniors in non-concurrent classes are required to reach the goal as well. With the only exception of the last 9 weeks because they will no longer be in school. I talked to the the high school librarian, Mrs. Turley, and english teachers Ms. Leonard and Mrs. Cockrell. They provided me with this information and even told me about books, new and old, that they believe would be enjoyed. Cause if you have to read a book, it might as well be a good one, right?
Unwind: Neal Shusterman - 14.0 pts
Legend (series): Marie Lu - 11.0 pts
Harry potter (series): J.K. Rowling - 6.0 to 44.0 pts
Art of racing in the rain: Garth Stein - 11.0 pts
And Ms. Leonard’s and Mrs. Cockrell’s favorites,
A Thousand Splendid Suns: Khaled Hosseini - 16.0 pts
The Storyteller: Jodi Picoult - 25.0 pts
If none of these seem interesting to you, you can talk to Ms. Turley in the library. She can definitely help you find one to fit your interests. By Melody and Joshua Bogard