Published: 3/3/2020 6:43:58 PM
CONWAY — Monday would have been the 116th birthday of Springfield native Theodor Seuss Geisel.
You know him as Dr. Seuss, and for 83 years children have pored over his more than 60 illustrated books for lessons on life, in poetic meter.
To celebrate the legend’s birthday, Conway Grammar School and others across the country observed Read Across America Day, a reading initiative from the National Education Association. About 15 people — school staffers, local and state police, School committee members, Conway Selectboard members and Frontier Regional School students — visited the school at 24 Fournier Road on Monday to read to students in preschool through sixth grade. Reading started in the gymnasium and guest readers then went to different classrooms to read aloud. The highlight of the event was the presence of the Red Hawk, Frontier’s mascot.
Kristen Gordon, in her fourth year as principal, said her school has a great community and events like Monday’s make that bind even tighter.
“It’s a great feel,” she said in her office. “We have kids who love to read, which is a principal’s dream, right?”
Darius Modestow, superintendent of Frontier Regional and Union 38 school districts, stopped by Emily Tynan’s first-grade class to read “Who Wants a Hug?” He flipped each page as he went along, pausing once to constructively criticize one of the book’s characters for failing to compost. Marie Diemand, a senior on Frontier’s girls basketball and cross country teams, read “The Cat and the Hat,” a Dr. Seuss classic.
Ito McMillan, a senior on Frontier Regional School’s football and wrestling teams, visited multiple classrooms dressed as the Red Hawk, stopping in to Jennifer Wheeler’s second-grade class to read “Dinosaurs Live On!”
Each classroom’s hallway bulletin board was decorated in a Dr. Seuss theme and Gordon said awards would be presented later in the afternoon. She also said that, for the second year, Dr. Seuss-themed escape rooms were planned throughout the school on Tuesday evening.
Reach Domenic Poli at: dpoli@recorder.com or 413-772-0261, ext. 262.