Principal Scott Oshrin’s goal is for every Southdown Primary School student to develop a real love for reading. If they do, the youngsters will never have a dull day.
Mr. Oshrin and Southdown’s faculty believe that if students make reading a part of their daily schedule, they will have a life filled with adventure and excitement and their vocabulary, writing, spelling, grammar, punctuation and foundation of knowledge in multiple areas will grow by leaps and bounds.
Southdown students enjoyed lots of fun at Community Read-In Day as officials from across Huntington UFSD visited classrooms with their favorite books, sharing stories with eager youngsters spread across grades K-3.
The event kicked off Southdown’s Pick a Reading Partner program. “Learning to read is the single most important activity in a child’s education,” according to the New York State PTA, which sponsors the PARP initiative. “Studies show that children who read at home are better prepared to succeed in formal education.”
Superintendent James W. Polansky was among the guests at community read-in day. The visitors includes district principals Donna Moro, Michelle Richards, Brenden Cusack and Valerie Capitulo-Saide. Participants also included Director of Elementary Mathematics Marybeth Robinette, English Language Arts Coordinator Angela Berner, Southdown PTA President Devon Perotti, Director of Special Education and Student Support Services Diana Rich, Director of STEM Jill Johanson, District Clerk Joanne Miranda and Special Education Chair Johanna Canonica.
“PARP is a program that asks a partner (parent, grandparent, babysitter, older sibling, cousin, friend, etc.) to read with a child for at least 20 minutes daily, stressing the fact that reading can be fun as well as informative,” according to the NYS PTA. “The choice of reading materials can vary from books to anything with printed words. The daily activity of reading together strengthens reading and communication skills in the child and strengthens their relationship.”
Southdown’s PTA is backing the “Reading Rocks” initiative with its full support. Mr. Oshrin and his faculty and staff have worked hard to make the 2020 program fun for students on every grade level.
