Carbonaro devotes a day to books

The Robert W. Carbonaro School participated in Read Across America on May 13 with a day devoted to books and charity.

One of the highlights of the day was a mystery teacher swap, in which students were visited — and read to — by a faculty member from another grade level. “The kids didn’t know who was coming in,” said fourth-grader teacher James Friel, who was sent off to share a book with a sixth-grade class. A kindergarten teacher came and read to his students.

Children in Friel’s class also brought in blankets and towels to spread out around the room for some silent reading time. The students then read with their book buddies in a kindergarten class.

Teacher’s assistant Anne Marie Allocca read the Dr. Seuss book “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!” to a sixth-grade class. She said the book is perfect because it is about graduation and those students will soon be moving on to junior high.

Allocca said the book was suggested by a friend. She went to the store and bought it the night before the read aloud.

In the library, third-grade students from the enrichment program told folktales from around the world. Children used puppets to tell their story to classmates. Brandon Villanueva, who read “The Little Old Lady and the Leprechaun” from Ireland, said he practiced a lot in front of his parents. “I read the story a couple of times,” he said, “and then I started using the puppets.”

Adriana Heneghan made her own paper puppets to tell “The Silly Wishes” from France. She said the lesson of the story is to be careful what you wish for.

For Izobel Shafer, books are a way of life so she was thrilled to share a story with her peers. “I love to read,” she said. “I read a lot and sometimes my mom has to tell me to stop reading in the middle of the night.”

Shafer told the story of the “Leopard’s Drum” from Africa. Yajvin Dabbiru’s story, “Little Fox and Leopard” from China, was a tale about a fox who tried to become the leader of the forest. The story has an anti-bullying message.

Librarian Kate Lallier said the eight students who performed stories are the top readers in their grade and get to come to the library regularly for reading enrichment. She said the children did a great job last Thursday. “It’s hard when you’re 8 years old to get up in front of an audience,” she said, “but they all did the best that they could. They worked hard at it so I was proud of them.”

The school also held a fundraiser for the Ronald McDonald House. Teachers pledged money and got to kick a soccer ball at sixth-grade teacher Mike Neri, who was defending the net. “The kids watched, they cheered, they had a great time,” said Jen Mechetti who organized the day’s events along with fellow reading teacher Laurie Arnone.

Money raised from the penalty kicks and an evening dance-a-thon for students will be used to purchase recorded books for the Ronald McDonald House. This is the 12th year the Carbonaro School has partnered with the charity organization.

“We want everyone to love reading,” Principal Dr. Lisa Conte said.