Onekama's Colorful Kids are Building a Rainbow.

On each red heart students wrote how they showed love to family or friends. On the purple heart students wrote how they show bravery trying something new.

Onekama Elementary celebrates reading month

What color is your heart? This was the question on the minds of Onekama Elementary students following a presentation by local author Linda Reau.

Reau, a former teacher, is the author of the children’s book What Color is Your Heart? Onekama Elementary School chose to revolve this year’s “March Is Reading Month” activities around the themes of Reau’s touching storybook. The school kicked off their Reading Month celebration by a series of presentations for students in Kindergarten through fifth grade by Reau herself. The presentations, as well as supplies for Reading Month classroom activities, were provided by a grant from Blarney Castle Oil and Propane.

What Color is Your Heart? is a loving tale told through colors, as the main character Emma explores different feelings. When Grandma says that Emma’s friend must have a dark-colored heart because he was mean, Emma decides that she needs to find out the color of each of her family members’ hearts. With their help, Emma discovers the color of her own heart.

“We are grateful to Linda Reau for the engaging presentation today, and to Blarney Castle for making it possible,” said Onekama School Title I teacher Shantel Niederstadt, who organized the Reading Month program. “Ms. Reau’s story was a perfect way to launch our Reading Month celebration, as it supports our behavior expectations: respect, responsibility and safety.”

Onekama teachers have some great activities planned for the remainder of the month to support students’ reading. The week of March 5 will focus on activities related to respect. The theme for the week of March 12 will be Responsibility. During the week of March 19, the theme will be safety.

Over the course of the month, students will complete projects both in class and with their families at home, which will reinforce the colorful themes of Reau’s book, and which will help students develop positive attitudes towards reading and reinforce positive behaviors at school. Also planned for the month of March is a Student Book Exchange in the school’s Media Center.

The Reading Month celebration will conclude with Young Author’s Night, which will be held on Friday, March 23 in the Onekama School cafetorium. During this event, students in grades K – 5 will have the opportunity to read aloud to family and friends the original stories they are writing and illustrating in class.

It’s going to be one colorful month at Onekama Elementary School.

Article from Manistee News Advocate

March 2012

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