Costumed Shark, Bunny, Ballerina Read To Students In Alexandria

ALEXANDRIA, VA — Children at Alexandria's Charles Barrett Elementary School were in for a treat Thursday as costumed students read books to them for Read Across America Day.

Read Across America is a nationwide event to encourage love of reading. It also falls on the birthday of Dr. Seuss, the popular children's book author.

Alexandria City Public Schools' own Read Across America event was organized by a high school junior named Fatima. Working with teachers, including her former Charles Barrett Elementary teacher Stephanie Kessinger, she organized a group of over a dozen students to read to children.

"It's so wonderful. Look at the connection between a former student and her teacher," Charles Barrett Elementary principal Loren Brody told Patch. "It just speaks so much to her journey through ACPS, from Charles Barrett Elementary to Alexandria City High School."

The participating high school students are part of the Career and Technical Education and Health Occupations Students of America.

"These are actually all students that want to be in the health profession but want to give back," Kessinger told Patch.

Participating high school students arrived at the school Thursday morning donning costumes, from Little Red Riding Hood and a ballerina to a shark and bunny. Each brought favorite children's books they would read to classrooms of students.

The group even got participation from Academy of Health Sciences teachers Josephine Bloodworth, Greg Wright and Laura Evans. One of the teachers, dressed as the wolf from Little Red Riding Hood, gave students a chilling surprise while entering classrooms. But it was all in good fun, as the "Big Bad Wolf" was only there to hand out bookmarks to children.

Read Across America Day draws nationwide participation of over 45 million students, families and teachers each year. Organized by the National Education Association, the initiative encourages readers to celebrate reading in March and year round while highlighting diverse books about all kinds of people and places.