Hundreds of Children to Read Across Orlando on July 1

News provided by

National Education Association

Jun 25, 2015, 09:00 ET


ORLANDO, Florida (PRWEB) June 25, 2015 -- With summer in full swing, Seuss will be on the loose at locations of the Orange County Library System with hundreds of local elementary students hearing “Horton Hears a Who!” and “If I Ran the Zoo” to encourage reading fun—even when school is out. The National Education Association will host its signature read-in at 11:15 a.m. EDT, on Wednesday, July 1, at Orlando Public Library’s main branch, located at 101 E. Central Blvd. in Orlando. More than 200 Orlando area elementary students will don red-and-white stovepipe reading hats, made famous by the Cat in the Hat, and get in on the reading excitement.

As part of its award-winning Read Across America program, NEA is working with the Orange County Library System to host free summer reading events throughout the metro area during the week of June 29–July 2, so that kids can Read Across Orlando! NEA will be distributing Read Across America summer reading packets and kits to the branch libraries for them to host their own events throughout the week.

In this high-energy event, students will be treated to a Seuss-tastic morning of readings, activities, and entertainment, as well as a special visit from the Cat in the Hat and his friends—Thing 1 and Thing 2.

WHO:

  • Lily Eskelsen García, president, National Education Association
  • Mary Anne Hodel, library director/CEO, Orange County Library System
  • Hundreds of school children from Orlando area
  • The Cat in the Hat, courtesy of Dr. Seuss Enterprises, L.D.

WHAT:
NEA’s Read Across Orlando culminates with a special read-in at the Orlando Public Library and all 14 branches of the Orange County Library System participating to celebrate summer reading.

WHEN:
11:15 a.m.–12 p.m. (noon) EDT, Wednesday, July 1, 2015

WHERE:
Orlando Public Library, Main Branch, 101 E. Central Blvd., Orlando, Florida (Between Rosalind & Magnolia Aves.)

WHY:
As thousands of educators arrive in Orlando for NEA’s Annual Meeting, hundreds of elementary students will don red-and-white-striped hats and celebrate summer reading at NEA’s Read Across America annual read-in along with Dr. Seuss’s famous feline, the Cat in the Hat. Research shows that summer reading is instrumental in fighting the “summer reading slump” or “summer reading slide,” which is the cumulative effect of summer learning differences that are viewed as a primary cause of widening achievement gaps between students of lower and higher socioeconomic levels. Read Across Orlando will encourage youngsters to develop a healthy love of books by making reading fun. Experts on children’s literacy issues also will be available for the news media.

The 3 million-member NEA will be in Orlando June 26–July 6 for its 153rd Annual Meeting and 94th Representative Assembly, which is expected to attract more than 7,000 educators from around the country.

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing nearly 3 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, educational support professionals, school administrators, retired educators and students preparing to become teachers. Find out more at http://www.nea.org.

Staci Maiers, National Education Association, http://www.nea.org, 202-270-5333, [email protected]