To promote the importance of literacy, more than 450 Fayetteville-Manlius School District students and staff members participated in the world’s largest shared reading experience, Jumpstart’s Read for the Record.
On Oct. 26, 5th grade Literacy Lab students at Wellwood Middle School read With Lots of Love, a book about fostering relationships and connectedness, by Jenny Torres Sanchez and illustrated by André Ceolin.
During 20-minute sessions, groups of up to three 5th grade students worked together reading With Lots of Love to kindergarten, 1st grade and 2nd grade classes across the F-M School District, virtually.
Read for the Record brings students and educators together in an attempt to break the world record for the greatest number of readers and listeners of the same book on the same day. The more times the book is read, Jumpstart, a national nonprofit organization that focuses on improving early childhood education, increases the number of books it donates to classrooms, libraries and community centers in underserved communities.
In support of early language development, as well as social-emotional development, the event aims to spread awareness about the importance of access to inclusive literature that encourages belonging and connection by reflecting students’ own experiences and the experiences of others, according to Jumpstart’s website.
More than 26 million people have taken part in this worldwide annual campaign. F-M students have been participating in Read for the Record for 13 years. The world record results are expected to be released in 2024.
