Pearl River Elementary Schools Bring in Parents as Reading Partners

Evans Park Elementary School Principal Peggy Lynch shares quotes with her school's teachers though a bulletin board.

She found one she thinks is perfect for this time of year.

"Children become readers on the laps of their parents."

That sums up a large part of the idea behind the Parents as Reading Partners (PARP) progam, which wraps up Friday at Franklin Avenue, Evans Park and Lincoln Avenue Elementary Schools.

PARP run by the New York State PTA and asks parents to read with their children at least 15 minutes per day. 

"It is pretty widespread, but how it is done is left up to the individual districts and schools," said Evans Park Principal Peggy Lynch. "We do lots of reading activities. We encourage kids to read at home. We track the books they read at home.

"The goal is for them to read every day with their parents."

The end of PARP coincides with the Rockland Read-In, a county-wide event sponsored Rockland BOCES School Library System. Now in its 28th year, the read-in is designed to promote reading as a fun activity, including a competition among participating schools. All five schools in the Pearl River School District are taking part in the event this Friday.

PARP began at Evans Park in late January when this year's focus, a circus theme which is called "Get In On The Act And Read" was introduced to the students through a series of skits prepared by art teacher Tom Price with the help of the parents. 

Price and the parents also put on a play on the final day of PARP. This year's will be 9:30 a.m. at Evans Park.

Events also include a family book fair night and three book swaps for the kids. Students can bring in a book they finished and trade it for one that somebody else is done with. 

"I have two children in the school. They like the book swap," said Kathy Sherry-Cassidy, who took over organizing for the parents at Evans Park two years ago. "They say, 'I got Liam's book.' or 'I got Mary's book."

"She has really been the cheerleader for the themes," Lynch said of Sherri-Cassidy. 

In addition to reading at home, parents come in and read to their children's classes. 

"There is a continuous flow of parents reading," Lynch said. "That's a really special part of it. It gives the parents the opportunity to sit in class. Kids are proud to have their parents come in.

"The idea is to cencourage reading at home. The more we bring parents in, the more likely tehy are to continue with it."

Parents setting an example for their children is also an important part of PARP.

"They all know their teachers read," Lynch said. "The idea is for their parents to come in and read to their classmates, it is a proud moment. They can say, 'My mom is a reader. My dad is a reader. I'm a reader."

Sherri-Cassidy said she discovered some books that her two children, both third graders, like through choices of books by other parents that came in to read.

"I learned my children like the Bad Kitty series," Sherri-Cassidy said. "We went to the library for that.

"I have found the teachers to be flexible and allow the parents to be involved and that is a good thing."