By Kathaleen Bourgault,
Library Assistant,
Martel Elementary School
Theodor Seuss Geisel, commonly known as Dr. Seuss, was born on March 2, 1904. In celebration of his birthday, Martel School participated in a weeklong series of events. For one activity, Read Across America, teachers chose a favorite book from the library and read to students in a class other than their own. No two teachers chose the same book, and they especially enjoyed sharing with students at a different grade level.
Nutrition workers Carol Labonte, Sue Vachon, and Lisa Kearns contributed to the celebration one day by serving green eggs and ham sandwiches. Everyone was a great sport in trying the colorful sandwiches, even if some people did need a little convincing that they really did taste just like regular eggs.
Each day of the celebration week, a Dr. Seuss trivia question was posted in the front lobby of the school. Students who answered the question correctly submitted their name for a daily drawing. Each daily winner received a gift certificate from Mr. Paperback. The school buzzed with excitement in anticipation of each new question and the daily drawings. Participation was high, as the basket of names was full by the end of every day.
In recognition of the popular Dr. Seuss book, The Cat in the Hat, third-, fourth-, fifth-, and sixth-grade students wrote poems about hats. One poem was chosen from each classroom, and its author read his/her poem over the intercom to the school. Third grader Nicholas Garcia, fourth graders Colby Brown and Jacob Berube, fifth grader Victoria Wysocki-Wilson, and sixth graders Nicole Kearn, Tyler Turcotte, and Brian Beaucage all did a wonderful job writing and reading their poems.
To culminate our weeklong celebration, we held a door-decorating contest. Classes decorated their doors using a Dr. Seuss book as a theme, and staff people Carol Labonte and Bert Pare served as judges. Donna Norcross’ second-grade class won by drawing a caricature of themselves reading their favorite book. They received a gift certificate to Mr. Paperback for a book to add to their classroom library.
The staff and students of Martel would like to thank Principal Stephen Whitfield for having special bookmarks made for the school to commemorate the Dr. Seuss Read Across America. And, finally, a big thank you to all students and staff for their participation. Let’s look forward to next year’s celebration!
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