Celebrating reading with a fall literacy celebration

Date: October 18, 2019

Location: Johnstown, PA

RIF and State Farm teamed up for a fun, fall literacy celebration for the kindergartners of Johnstown Elementary. Making a connection to the beautiful foliage in their city, students were invited to repeat certain lines after the reader in a call and response style read aloud of We’re Going on a Leaf Hunt by Steve Metzger. The book was brought to life by adding simple physical movements that the students were encouraged to follow along with. State Farm volunteers used prop leaves to show the different types of leaves mentioned throughout the book which gave the students a clear visual. After a lively read aloud, each students selected 3 books to build their home library with the help of State Farm volunteers.

Lessons Learned

• Corporate employee volunteer opportunities are a fun and fulfilling way for individuals to give back to the communities in which they live and work.
• Use call and response techniques as well as simple physical movements to engage your audience during a read aloud. This is especially effective for students who respond well to a kinesthetic learning style.
• If you have a large audience, use visuals and props to bring your read aloud book to life and make sure the back row feels as engaged as the front row. Another way to engage a large audience is to have volunteers hold extra copies of the read aloud book and show pictures throughout different areas of the audience.