2011 Read-a-Thon Begins...

Last summer, the Humjibre Community Library hosted the Read-a-Thon, a four week event that rewards registered students with prizes depending on their time engaged with a book in the Humjibre Library. The prizes are school supplies such as pencils, notebooks, backpacks, and even storybooks. It was remembered as a boundlessly enthusiastic time, with over 400 kids from the local Primary and Junior High Schools participating. An insistent murmuring of reading voices issued from the windows of the library during those weeks, but it was all chaotic joy when the prizes to the top readers were announced with the help of Summer Serve and Learn volunteers.

This Monday, Lawrence Donkor opened the doors of the Humjibre Community Library to begin registration for the third annual Read-a-Thon with help from the rest of the education team: Happy Nkrumah, Christina Gyening, Ernest ‘Saga’ Badu, and Jen Artibello. The buzz has been building for some time already: students were flocking to sign up for an event that was still weeks away! This year, the Read-a-Thon will begin on June 2 and the already eagerly anticipated award ceremony will take place on June 25'th.

With everyone having already experienced a dizzying swarm of abundantly eager kids last year, a system has been engineered: students are formally registered by Christina, Saga, and Jen. Those students then attended an immediate session on rules and expectations, delivered in a spirit of swift justice by Lawrence and Happy. No eyes wandered in that session, and there was very little fidgeting.

Outside the library was a different matter altogether, with piles of children everywhere, some laughing at the day's shenanigans, some doing their homework, some hamming up some dance moves for their friends, and some already going through their vocabulary books in preparation. There were also a few too young to participate, but came wondering what the ruckus was about.

By Tuesday, there were already over 250 students, and they had yet to register the Junior High School students. Keep checking back with us to see what kind of excitement happens next in the 2011 Read-a-Thon.

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