First Opportunities For Learning Read-A-Thon Successful
152 students at OFL centers from Dana Point all the way to Lancaster participated in the first-ever OFL Read-a-Thon on Saturday, September 6th from 10am to 1pm. The goal was to help students read for pleasure in a relaxing environment. Reading for pleasure is one of the key indicators for students to read at or above grade level, score well on standardized tests, and become lifelong readers and learners.
Teachers and center coordinators at our centers organized unique and engaging environments for reading, including:
-Different spots decorated for students to chose their reading environments: a mountain retreat, tropical beach and Sports Day Backyard BBQ
-A "Beach Book" themed Read-a-Thon where students sat in beach chairs, sipped lemonade, and read a good book.
-A multicultural reading event where students read books, poems, and non-fiction texts from various countries and sampled food from those cultures.
-Several centers also set up various stations and workshops for students to read newspapers, create personalized bookmarks, and write poetry and short stories.
Students had the following to say about their experiences at the Read-a-Thon:
“I thought it was a nice time to come read, be stress free, focus on yourself and read. It was a peaceful environment”
“I thought it was a great experience, lots of fun, and would love to do it again.”
“I loved the Read-a-Thon. It was a new experience and I got to meet new people. It was really cool because in class, you can’t talk to the other students, but here you can.”
“I liked the Read-a-Thon because it inspired me to start to reading and encourage my little brother and sister to read.”