Schools

Branford Summer Reading a Payoff for Students and Downtown Merchants

The annual reading program a success as the Branford Education Foundation teams up with Branford Schools and the Downtown Merchant's Association.

It’s a good thing that the Branford Education Foundation has WTNH’s Director of Marketing, Mary Lee Weber, on board. She teamed up with Assistant Superintendent Mary Peraro and the Downtown Merchants Association to come up with a unique summer reading program.

The BEF had purchased thousands of red and white pennants with the words, “I am thankful for…” written on them. The idea, said Weber, “is there is so much to be thankful for here in Branford.”

From there, Weber and Peraro decided it would be  a good idea to blend the use of the flags and the summer reading initiative, Branford Reads. Children were encouraged to pledge the number of books they would read over the summer on the pennant. The pledges were accompanied by an essay detailing why students, grades K to 4, thought they should read over the summer.

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After students filled out two pennants, one to keep and one to be placed around town, student couriers worked to distribute more than 1,400 flags to downtown businesses. Students met at the former Ms. Judy’s Emporium and disbanded to area merchants requesting they post the flags in their store windows stating the number of books a student had pledged to read.

The idea was a success.

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Weber shared a note from Nelly Odenwaelder, Senior Vice President & Manager of . “The children have been wonderful. Not a day goes by with[out] some child followed by a parent, seen pointing to their flag or looking for their flag. [It’s] A wonderful site. I sincerely hope that all those book were read. My favorite was the boy who said he would read a story to his sister every day plus his own pledge.”

Of the project, including the student essays and the pledges, Tina O’Neill of the BEF commented, “This program has given our younger Branfordites a voice in the community.”

On October 5 at the Teaching and Learning Committee Meeting of the BOE, the top reader from each homeroom, K through will be recognized and one student from each school will receive a Kindle (random drawing) courtesy of the BEF (three e-readers) and the Downtown Merchant’s Association (one e-reader).


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