Posted by student SARAH LEER – On National Service and Remembrance Day, in light of First Lady Ginger Beebe’s efforts to promote literacy in our schools, my classmates Erin O’Leary, Adam Moreland and I donated time to read to a class of second graders at Washington Magnet Elementary in Little Rock.
I was immediately greeted at the door, offered refreshments and asked to choose a book from those laid out on a table, of which were nominated for the Arkansas Diamond Primary Book Award, which is voted on by the second grade. I chose “The Pink Refrigerator” by Tim Egan and was escorted to Ms. Newton’s second grade class. The children were quiet, attentive and ready to ask questions.
As we wove our way through Dodsworth’s adventure with his pink refrigerator, each student leaned in intently to catch every word. As soon as I reached the end of the book, hands shot up from the group and the students jockeyed for position to ask me “questions.” Their questions were not for me or about my role in the classroom but were their reflections on the inner workings of the magical pink refrigerator. I fielded imaginative commentary and marveled at how each student was ready to discuss the source of magic that resided within the refrigerator. I was taken by a peer helper, a leader from the fourth grade class, back to the media center for refreshments and a conversation with Principal Katherine Snyder about her vision for the future of the school.
I am thankful to Ms. Snyder, Washington’s insightful and energetic Principal, for her hospitality. It was a gift to sit in Ms. Newton’s class and watch twenty imaginations run wild on the carpet in front of me; I just hope Washington Elementary will allow me to come back and spend some time sharing a good book.
Sarah Leer at Washington Elementary in Little Rock.
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