At the Better Cuts Barber Shop on Chase Street in Bowling Green, one rising fourth-grade customer typically prefers to stare into the screen of a smartphone while barber Mark Monroe cuts his hair.
But on a recent Wednesday afternoon, instead of watching the latest YouTube video, the youngster was reading one of the books Monroe supplied off a small shelf provided by Caroline County Public Schools.
Monroe was so impressed by the turnaround that he rewarded the youth with $5.
The CCPS #CarolineReads initiative’s Summer Road Trip wrapped up this past Wednesday as more than 100 students and staff attended a celebration at the baseball stadium near the county’s school administration building.
The Virginia All-In grant funded the one-year literacy campaign that has youth and adults alike glued to the pages.
“We transformed literacy into a true community movement,” Superintendent Sarah Calveric said.
The goal of the program, which ends in December, is to “create a culture where literacy is visible, celebrated, and accessible to all,” according to a presentation from staff to the school board earlier this week.
Calveric said students, staff, families, businesses, and community partners are uniting for the effort.
There was a literacy event on Main Street in Bowling Green, where students visited businesses to pick up books and engage in literacy-related activities. The Caroline Cruiser, a former school bus renovated into a community hub of information, made several stops and allowed students to grab free books.
There were also author visits for K-8 students, the summer reading program that just ended, and adult book clubs. Next school year, Caroline High students will operate a bookstore/cafe at the school to keep the momentum going.
“We work with the community because literacy can’t just be a school or teacher-to-student type of effort,” CCPS Assistant Superintendent Michael Mudd said. “It really is a community effort.”
Mudd said school officials were thrilled to see the excitement among business owners who were asked to host a “fill-up station or a little free library” at their establishments. They’ve expressed interest in continuing even though the All-In grant will expire.
The adult book clubs were a hit, as well, with Mudd noting that he joined one historical fiction group.
“We need our community to be a print-rich environment with books of all different interest levels and reading levels for kids and adults of all ages,” Mudd said.
The summer-ending event was called the Caroline Reads Home Run for Reading, where students and staff aimed to “knock literacy out of the park.”
In addition to free books, students had a station to make their own book, as well as play book bingo, go on a book walk, make puppets, and play in a kickball game for middle and high school students, among other activities.
A Caroline County Public Schools employee assists students at a literacy celebration event on July 15 at Caroline Stadium. (Photo courtesy of CCPS)
CCPS Communications and Community Engagement Specialist Lisa Stevens noted that teachers presented students with a bingo card at the end of the school year, which led them to various locations around the county to find new literature and exchange books. The card ultimately led the students to the event at the ballpark.
Stevens is hopeful that the program can continue beyond this year, whether it’s funded through another grant or business partners.<
“Caroline Reads was a campaign for this year, but community-based literacy, family engagement around literacy is absolutely here to stay,” Mudd said. “Since I’ve started working here, Dr. Calveric and I have had conversations about great practices to improve literacy and have a community that promotes a literacy-rich environment.”
The Virginia Department of Education identified two of Caroline’s five schools — Caroline Middle School and Bowling Green Elementary — as needing intensive support. Sixty-seven percent of students at CMS read at or above grade level, and just 43% of BGE students hit that mark.
While school officials are realistic about potential gains in just one year, they believe ingraining literacy skills into the community is a positive first step. Mudd saw some encouraging anecdotal evidence at Wednesday’s event, including on-site reading specialists offering tips to a concerned parent who is spending the summer working with her child on improving their reading skills.
Valerie Storke, a parent in attendance, said her rising kindergartner is already showing an increased interest in reading after a year in PreK.
“I think it’s really cool,” Storke said of having literacy embedded in the community. “He was with me his first three and a half years and then he went to preschool for half-days. So, for him to have this reading program — he’s done all the experiments and activities — it’s stuff I wouldn’t have done in the summer without it. He really enjoys it.”
