Pierce Reads is Bigger Than Ever

by Joan Hamilton

This coming Thursday, May 7th, nearly 190 Pierce students, their parents, and teachers will gather in the Pierce School library as a community of Readers to participate in Pierce Reads, a program created and run through the Pierce School Library for the past 14 years. Sadly, it may be the last Pierce Reads if there is no Library Assistant on board next year.

The following is a letter I sent to the Brookline School Committee concerning this issue.

April 28, 2009

Dear School Committee Members,

I would like to invite you all to attend Pierce Reads on Thursday, May 7th at 7p.m. in the Pierce School Library. Pierce Reads is a book discussion evening that entails students, their parents and teachers coming together as a community of readers to exchange views on a book read in common. This program, which occurs once in the fall and once in the spring, began fourteen years ago thanks to a grant from The Brookline Foundation. It is a program that has been replicated in most of the other seven elementary schools.

Our theme this year is “Between Two Worlds.” 4th graders are reading a book about a 4th grader just arrived from Kosovo; 5th and 6th graders are reading about a Sudanese “lost boy” and his first year in Minneapolis following the trauma of losing most of his family; 7th and 8th graders are reading about a Muslim family from Bangladesh who suddenly become “the enemy” following the terrorism of 9/11.

At present 81 students have signed up, meaning 81 parents will accompany them, plus approximately 15 Pierce staff members. We never have to coerce teachers to participate as discussion leaders. They always tell us being here is reward enough. One teacher, several years ago, put it thus: “I almost didn’t come. I was extremely tired and just wanted to go home and sleep; but I decided to come and I can only say this about Pierce Reads – It’s better than sleep.” Parents ask why we don’t have a Pierce Reads every month. Students, as well, give high marks to the evening. One African American boy being mentored by a sixth grade teacher (thanks to another Brookline Foundation grant), whispered (great excitement in his voice) to me one day last week, “I’m coming to my first Pierce Reads. A teacher is bringing me.”

Sadly, it will also be the last Pierce Reads if there is no library assistant at Pierce next year. The amount of person hours it takes both Shirley and me to read and choose the books, order and process them, book talk them in each class, advertise to parents, distribute the books, re-read the books the week prior to the discussions in order to prepare discussion packets for each co-leader, make up the discussion groups balanced between boys and girls, talkative and quiet students, make color-coded name tags for each participant, plan the discussion leaders’ dinner which takes place at 5:30p.m. prior to the event, prepare evaluation sheets, buy and prepare the refreshments and then clean up afterward, will be too many to make it possible to execute this twice-yearly event, given the 2/3 cut in the library program that will occur without an assistant.

You’ve heard me speak before about the culture of reading that takes years to build up in a school. This is the biggest Pierce Reads ever. It seems more than sad that it may be the last.

Sincerely,
Joan Hamilton
Pierce School Librarian