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About 100 pre-kindergarten and kindergarten students sat on the gym floor at Viers Mill Elementary last week, eyes glued to the man in the rocking chair in front of them as he read the children's book "Corduroy."
They giggled at the silly parts, pointed to the screen behind them with life-size pictures of the book and clapped enthusiastically when the book's bear found its owner.
Tom Wolf, the general manager of Hyatt Regency Bethesda, was the man in the rocking chair. He and his employees read to the children last week to promote the idea that reading is cool anywhere and with anyone.
Reading is one of the fundamentals of learning, said Elba Hildebrant, the assistant principal of Viers Mill. But if children are only opening a book at school, it can set back their skills, she said.
That's why area elementary schools are pushing events like the one at Viers Mill where people other than teachers open a book with the children.
"Children see we read as a community — not just as a school," said Lindsey Booth, a kindergarten teacher at Viers Mill.
A crucial aspect of that community is, of course, parents. Whether they read with their child or not, they have even more of an impact than the teacher, Booth said.
Children who participated in the record-breaking event were given a book to take home to read with their parents.
"Parents should always be reading to their children," Booth said.
However, many parents don't realize they need to read with their child, said Carrie Marvis, a reading specialist for Piney Branch Elementary in Takoma Park. That's why Piney Branch and other county schools have annual reading nights where parents are given strategies on how to read with their child at home.
Marvis said her school is focusing on engaging African-American and Hispanic parents as a way to close the achievement gap among those students.
The point is to let them know they are a huge part of their child's education, she said.
Glen Haven Elementary in Wheaton has a similar event.
Meredith Young, a reading specialist at Glen Haven, said reading nights, where parents are taught the importance of reading to their child, give parents the same tools teachers use. A lot of times parents want to help their child "but they don't know what to do, they don't know where to start," Young said.
At reading nights, teachers explain that partner reading — whether it's with a parent, a friend or someone else — is one of the best ways to improve a child's reading skills, said Barbara Milton, a reading specialist at Glen Haven.
Reading out loud to someone increases children's fluency and their understanding of the story, she said.
Parents at Bel Pre Elementary in Wheaton are given reading calendars to mark off nights they read with their children, said the school's principal, Carmen Van Zutphen.
Programs like that help emphasize that reading happens in and out of school.
"Some parents' backgrounds may be reading to children, but some parents may come for a different background where they didn't have that experience of the importance of a bedtime story," she said.
While members of the community can be role models for a day, parents are a child's constant role model, Young said. If they're reading, their child will be reading.
"It's just more important to the kids when it's important to the parents," she said.
Ask your child questions about the book before, during and after reading about the book.
Read everyday items with your kids, such as recipes or coupons. Ask your child to read it aloud to you.
Ask your child's teacher what books he or she is reading.
Make sure your child is reading at just the right level. Spend time making sure they're able to read comfortably but independently.
Talk to your child about what he or she is reading. Ask them to re-tell the story or discuss it on a higher level of understanding.
Cresthaven Elementary School, 1234 Cresthaven Drive in Silver Spring, will hold a "Reading Rocks! Night" 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Oct. 29 as a way to encourage families to support their children at home through reading and writing. Call 301-431-7622. Other reading events are held throughout the fall in county schools. Call your child's school or check its Web site for more information.
