Summer Reading Celebrated At Hawley With A Mascot

By Eliza Hallabeck

Students sat in the gymnasium at Hawley Elementary School this past Monday to celebrate the efforts of students who read over the summer.

“We had 170 kids read this summer,” said library/media specialist Doris Papp, “and some of them read a lot of books.”

The 170 students read more than 3,000 books during the summer, and not all of the totals have been submitted to school yet, according to Mrs Papp.

In honor of the event, Storm, the tiger mascot for the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, made it to Hawley to visit the students as they were acknowledged for the work they did over their summer.

Excited students greeted Storm when he entered the gymnasium, and he made a quick circle around the room to shake hands with the seated students.

When Storm got back to Mrs Papp, who stood at the front of the room, she announced the students who read by their classrooms. Each student was told to stand up when his or her name was called.

The first grade students were called by their classrooms first, then the second grade students, third grade students, fourth grade students, and finally the kindergarteners.

For their summer reading challenge the students had to read a minimum of three books to qualify for a free ticket to see the Bridgeport Sound Tigers hockey team play a game, and their parents would receive reduced prices for their tickets for their child’s effort in reading.

A special night for Hawley students will be held, but students can use their ticket anytime they wish to attend a game. The special Hawley night will include putting the name of Hawley Elementary School on the board to welcome everyone from the school to the event.

The summer reading effort is being celebrated all week at Hawley, and students’ names are still being added to a drawing for prizes. For every 50 pages they read over the summer the students will be given one ticket for the drawing. Prizes in the drawing include stuffed animals and pizza from My Place Restaurant on Queen Street.

At the end of the presentation, Mrs Papp congratulated the students on their achievements over the summer.

“You need to keep reading,” she said.

Storm said goodbye to the students by standing near the door and shaking hands, giving high-fives, or hugging the students as they left the gymnasium to return to their classrooms.