Olmstead School librarian Jennifer Wilcutt takes reading to the next level when she plans any book related event. Usually the events are in a series that take place over an extended period of time. The month of October at Olmstead has been no exception.
Over 100 4th and 5th grade students, teachers, and parents attended a private screening of the movie Goosebumps in Clarksville on Friday, Oct. 16. The film is an adaptation of the beloved children's book series, Goosebumps, by author R. L. Stine. Students were invited to attend the movie after reading and successfully passing the Accelerated Reader testing on one of Stine's books.
The 2nd annual Book Character Pumpkin Contest took place through Oct. 30. Students and staff were given the opportunity to choose a character based on their favorite piece of literature and recreate that character using a pumpkin. Parents were encouraged to work with their child. This school-wide event has doubled in participation from last year, with over 60 pumpkins entered in this year's competition.
"Students have been asking all year if the contest would take place again simply because of the fun and excitement that it brought to school last year," saiys Wilcutt. “The contest gave families the chance to spend quality time discussing favorite books and creating characters based on those books.” Students visited the library by classroom to vote for their favorite pumpkin characters.
Spooky reading rounded out the month on Oct. 30 for grades 2nd through 8th. Nearly 300 students rotated through the library to read a variety of spooky books by flashlight. The annual spooky reading event, which started in 2010, has engaged students in reading books from a variety of genres. Students become more confident in their book choices and come away from the experience with a more open mind.
"I want my students to be excited about reading and help them make connections between the books they love and their lives," says Wilcutt.
Principal Bonnie Watson says, “You never know what idea Jennifer is going to come up with. She thinks outside of the box, and the sky is the limit. Just when I think she can’t top what she’s done before, she surprises me. Going to the library is definitely an adventure that our students look forward to each week.”