SDEA celebrates
Read Across America

SDEA/NEA encouraged all locals, retired and student members to get involved in this year's Read Across America campaign, and you came through!

Several SDEA members submitted their plans to help celebrate NEA's Read Across America, and we wanted to share their ideas and events with all our members.  Check out the ideas below and start planning your event for next year now!

Did you do doing something to celebrate Read Across America?  Tell us about it!  Send an e-mail detailing your event, and we'll list it below!

The South Dakota Education Association held an event in the Capitol Rotunda March 2 to mark NEA’s Read Across America.  Kindergarten and first-grade students at Washington Elementary, joined legislators and parents for a visit from the Cat in the Hat and Sam I Am (Kara Hoines and Loren Paul of SDEA), who read Dr. Seuss books and told the students that we read to succeed! Below, The Cat and Sam are pictured with SDEA President Sandy Arseneault.

Custer Elementary celebrates
Read Across America Week March 1-4

Teachers & students plan to decorate their classroom doors.

• Kickoff with Cat in the Hat – School Assembly - Monday, March 1st.  Sam I Am will visit grade level groups to read Green Eggs and Ham.
   

• We're Reading Across America:  Click here to see flyer
   

• Daily Mystery Reader – A mystery reader will read a section of a book over the intercom between 12:30 - 1:00.  The 1^st class to call the office with the correct reader and book will win the daily contest.  The mystery reader will  then go to that classroom and read the complete book.   
   

• Door Decorating Contest – Classroom doors and hallways will be decorated as a favorite classroom book.  Classes will tour the school on Thursday to pick their favorite door.
   

• Guest Readers – Parents, community readers and retired teachers will be available during the week to read to classrooms.
   

• Crazy Sock Day – Teachers and students will wear crazy socks or mismatched socks on Thursday and focus on the book Fox in Sox.

Custer Elementary RAA Committee:

Conni Virtue, chairperson
Lisa Richardson
Jodi Jarding
Lorie Steinhauer

Students will wear pajamas to relax and enjoy many Dr. Seuss books, some read by guest readers.

Shawn Giesler
Bridgewater Elementary

My 2nd grade students will do a variety of activities to celebrate Read Across America day.  We will first learn some background information about the day, including information about the author Theodor Seuss Geisel.  We will gather as many Dr. Seuss books as we can and read them together and individually in the classroom.  We will also write poems that rhyme and are similar to the ones in Dr. Seuss's books.

Roxanne Stevens
Highmore Elementary

We invite parents, school board, and administrators into our classrooms to read! Our Principal and Guidance Counsel read "Green Eggs & Ham" to all of our students at lunch! Our Librarian goes around to all of the classes, dressed as The Cat with treats for all. We have many more activities going on all day!

We are tired of winter, so we are celebrating Dr. Seuss' birthday with a BEACH PARTY!  Students and teachers will dress up in their beach clothes for the day, and the Learning Center will be turned into a beach for the day. Click here to see flyer.

Dawn Edwards & Lisa Merchen
Spearfish

Teddy Bear Reading:  Students will bring a stuffed animal or doll to read to and they have to be dressed moderately alike.  Read two to four small books or one larger book that day.  All day reading.

Ruth Ann Ridgeway
Wolf Creek School

High school students volunteer their time during study halls to go to our elementary school and read to the kids. The lunch ladies make a special breakfast. Elementary students hold contests and spend the day reading in groups with older students or community members.

Janelle Gregg
Sisseton

Redfield marks Dr. Seuss' birthday

8:30-9:15   Opening Ceremony in auditorium 

• Mayor Sanger will speak (The mayor comes and speaks about the importance of reading.)  
     

• *Seuss Singers  (A former teacher composed songs dealing with the Seuss stories.  Teachers volunteer to be the singers and perform, everyone wearing hats. Several get the students involved.)
   

• *2^nd grade skit (Each year, the 2^nd grade teachers choose a Seuss story and put together a reader’s theatre for the students.)

Guest Readers

• Teachers may choose a community person, parent, or any other reader to come into the classroom and share a Dr. Seuss book or any other author.

Jr. High Readers in Grades 1 & 2

• Junior High students come at designated times to read a Seuss book to the 1^st and 2^nd grade classrooms.  They love having the “big kids” come to read to them.

Other events:

• Dr. Seuss Video in classrooms for Grades K, 1 & 2.  We used to do this all together on our big screen in the auditorium, but now all of the elementary classrooms have Promethean boards so they will stay in the classrooms.
   

• All grades can display Dr. Seuss artwork in the main hallway.
   

• Cheryl K. has made hats for all of the Kindergarten students. (This is one of our custodians.  For the past 3 years, she has made Cat in the Hat hats for all of the kindergarten students!)
   

• We will be putting Dr. Seuss quotes on the walls on each of our levels – grades 1-4.  These quotes will be posted on Monday, March 1.  Each student may pick a quote and let their teacher know what book it is from.  If they are correct, they will get a treat.  Students will have to the end of Tuesday, March 2 to answer.  One quote per student.
   

• The lunchroom will have something special for the day – in the past they have had green eggs and ham or birthday cake.
   

• Coffee for staff is planned in the lunchroom after school.  A staff member makes and decorates Dr. Seuss cakes.
   

• One of our second grade teachers has a Cat in the Hat suit and she always dresses up for the day, whiskers and all.

Peggy Morris
Redfield

Corsica National Honor Society students celebrated Read Across America Day with the K-4 students. The NHS students read a Dr. Seuss story to the class. Each class had an activity that went with their story. We all enjoyed a snack that matched with our book. Later, the NHS students read a second book to their class.

Christina Strid
Corsica NHS Advisor

Thank you to all who submitted their events!

  Don't see yours?  Contact Ken Potter at SDEA to submit one!