For the past couple months, Book Bears has partnered with the Claremont School district to spread literacy by sharing stories with pre-kindergarten and preschool students. On October 6, I had the pleasure of being a volunteer reader along with three other high school students.
Each of us chose a children’s book to read, and then asked a short discussion question to get some input from the kids. The kids seemed to have an absolute blast and were ecstatic to share their ideas about the stories.
The stories ranged from classics I remember from my childhood such as Pinkalicious, to educational and heartwarming stories like the one I chose: Abe the Service Dog. All of the readers did an incredible job engaging the kids, and it was a joy to see the biggest smiles on their little faces.
The Virtual Storytime event was a great reminder that just a small change in inflection in the voice can make stories especially interesting to listen to. A great tip for those wanting to read to younger members of their family is to interact with them while reading! For example, when reading Pinkalicious, the reader engaged the kids by asking questions during the story! Chances are, if you are showing genuine interest in the story, the listener will be just as enthusiastic about it.
It is extremely difficult for younger children to make meaningful connections during this time of mass social distancing. If they don’t have siblings, it might be rare for them to see children around their age group; Virtual Storytimes allow these children to make those important connections, and promote literacy at the same time!
I encourage anyone who can take a little time out of their day to consider contributing to a Virtual Storytime event in the future. It’s an incredibly rewarding experience to be able to bring some excitement to children whose normal schedules have been put on hold. If you are interested in promoting child literacy, stay tuned for more Virtual Storytime updates on all Book Bears social media pages!
Commentaires