Chatterton swaps books for charity

Colorful books, crazy hats and shared excitement filled the Chatterton Elementary School cafeteria in Merrick on Jan. 12 when the school celebrated Book Swap Day.

It was one part of Parents as Reading Partners Week, which encourages students to read at home and in school and is a collaborative effort among parents, teachers and community members. The week kicked off on Jan. 9 with an assembly to get students in the PARP spirit. Everyone sang songs about books, and students were filmed singing. The video was shown at the assembly.

This year’s PARP theme was Reading Rockstars. Each day various events took place that encouraged reading, and students were encouraged to dress up. On Monday, it was “Dress Like Your Favorite Character/Crazy Hat Day.”

The book swap was the week’s first official event. “When we created this day, we wanted students to realize that books can be cherished over and over again,” Principal Dana Bermas said. “We encourage them to bring one of their favorite books that they think a friend may like.”

The book swap was divided into 30-minute blocks by grade level, and all the students were eager to “shop” for books that they had not yet read. Robin Shultz, a Chatterton kindergarten teacher, said the event was a success. “The students love it,” she said.

Third-grader Dylan Levinter, 9, found a book from her favorite series, “Whatever After,” at the book swap. Her favorite part of the day: “We get to celebrate books.”

Students sat side by side reading their new books. James Gecsedi, 8, said the best part about the book swap was, “You get a new book and get to live with it your whole life.” His peer Vincent Dipalo, also 8, said that she loved “reading a new book and exploring all the mysteries you might find.”

Along with a book to be swapped, students also brought another book to be donated to schools in need. The student council collected the books in bins for donation to the nonprofit Book Fairies organization, which distributes books at low-income schools where children are unable to afford them.

“We not only want to encourage reading,” Berman said, “we also want them to be able to share the gift with others that are not able to.”