Jeannette classes battle for trophy based on number of books they read
Scarlett Stein just might be considered a celebrity of sorts among her peers at Jeannette McKee Elementary School.
Her picture is up on the Wall of Fame twice in the library, and if she reaches her goal this year it will be up there again.
A fourth-grade student, Scarlett earned the most points for the Reading Counts program in first and second grades.
Last year as a third-grader she said she missed winning by just one point.
"I don't actually know how many points I need to get, but I hope I can win," Scarlett said.
And judging by her continued enthusiasm for reading, she just might.
Reading Counts is a program from the Scholastic publishing company that uses computer software to generate reading lists based on students' reading level and interests. The youngsters can choose from thousands of books on a wide variety of topics, including animals, sports, science fiction, history and humor.
After reading the title, a student takes a computer-generated quiz. A personalized congratulations screen appears for passing. If a student does not pass a quiz, he or she can revisit the book and retake a quiz with a different set of questions.
In Jeannette School District, Reading Counts is a big deal.
On the elementary level, students can earn membership into four different clubs as they progress and accumulate more points.
This year's theme -- Read Like a Rock Star! -- gives the children a chance to get into different clubs around the themes of country, hip hop, jazz and rock 'n' roll.
Every child who makes it to the fourth club gets a T-shirt, and students who earn at least 260 points are invited to go on a field trip to a place that is kept secret until the end of the year.
Students also look forward to weekly announcements made by principal Dr. Richard King. Each Friday morning at 10:45, King announces winners and traveling trophies are given to the classes who have earned the most points that week.
The program is also offered to high school and middle school students.
Librarian Maria McCormick explained the middle school plans events throughout the year that students can be invited to and an auction is held at the end of the school year with a lot of neat prizes. Last year, she said there was a lot excitement about a football signed by all the Jeannette High School players.
McCormick feels the program has a lot of value for students.
"If you look into any studies on reading, that's what they want to see is the kids picking their own reading material for enjoyment," she said.
It also helps the teachers monitor their students to see what level they are on.
"It really helps the language arts teachers see who the readers are, and who they need to encourage more," she said. "And to see who is clearly not finding the right books for themselves."
Clearly Scarlett is one student who is hitting on the right titles for independent reading.
"I read all kinds of different books," she said, explaining she got real excited recently about a free book she got to take at the Reading is Fundamental program at the school library.
She chose the book "Starring Grace" by Mary Hoffman.
"It really interested me and I could picture in my head what was going on," Scarlett said.
She had the chapter book read in no time by picking it up during free time at school. She's also enjoying many titles in the library.
"We have so many books in the library. I really like the library," said Scarlett, who is reading a lot of Cam Jansen books these days.
"She loves reading," said Scarlett's father, Howard "Tubby" Stein of Jeannette. "She'll go home and sit on the couch and start reading away."
Stein said he and his wife, Dody, are very proud of their daughter.
And their other daughter, Grace, who is just 14 months old, may be a reader as well.
Scarlett said she likes to read to the toddler, but she choses titles that are more for her age level like Dora the Explorer and Blue's Clues.
When they run out of things to read it isn't uncommon for Mom and Dad to offer to drive Scarlett over to the Jeannette Public Library.
Scarlett said she can take out as many as eight books at the public library if she doubles up on her and her mother's library card.
And it all works out well because the library has a section that identifies books that are all part of Reading Counts.
