FORT PIERCE, Fla. — Students at one Fort Pierce elementary school are getting excited for next week's Scholastic Book Fair with a little help from WPTV.
Our station has partnered with the Scripps Howard Fund and Scholastic to allow each student at Weatherbee Elementary School — a Title I school — to take home three free books for the second year in a row through the "If You Give a Child a Book" campaign.
SPECIAL COVERAGE: Education
Inside the media center at Weatherbee Elementary School, media specialist Robin Marmitt shares her passion for reading with every student at the school.
"I can say, 'Remember when I taught you how to hold a book all the way up to now? You are reading chapter books and higher level things,'" Marmitt said.
There's a lot of pride spreading through these shelves and in between the 13,000 books, as Marmitt said their recent round of testing moved a group of students up to the next reading level.
"I started going through and giving them their new areas to shop for books, to check out books. So there's been a lot of excitement with that. And it gives them the connection between what they are learning in the class and how it translates into getting different books and being successful," Marmitt said.
Another chapter in the literacy book is helping the students build their home libraries. That's where the "If You Give a Child a Book" campaign through the WPTV and Scripps Howard Fund partnership comes in, once again sponsoring the school's Scholastic Book Fair.
WPTV education reporter Stephanie Susskind sat down with three fifth grade students who enjoy cracking open a good read.
"It strengthens your imagination," student Elijah Duroseau said.
"You get to read something about something else, and then you learn about it at the same time," student Ruby Morales added.
"Maybe because you can learn things from books," student Yoniyah Robinson said.
Elijah, Ruby, and Yoniyah are looking forward to taking home new books once again.
"You don't have to pay for them and you are able to read something that's interesting," Morales said.
"I think it's like a steal to get the books for free. And then when you're done, you can give them to your other family," Duroseau said.
Marmitt said there's an extra bit of pride and ownership when the kids know the books are theirs to keep.
"I love seeing them from our last free book fair. The kids are carrying those books every day in their bookbags. They pull them out in the morning and are reading them," Marmitt said. "A lot of kids take them everywhere with them."
WPTV will be at Weatherbee Elementary School on Monday, Feb. 26 as each of the school's more than 750 students takes home three free books from the book fair.
To donate to the "If You Give a Child a Book" campaign, click here.
