Role Models With Words

Students excitedly waved and cheered as the Coast Guard helicopter whirred to a safe landing on their grass field at McKinley Elementary School in San Gabriel.

Pilot Mitch Morrison jumped out of the cockpit, armed with a book and ready to read to some first-graders at the school’s 14th annual Community Read-In.

Morrison was one of 40 business and community leaders who recently visited classrooms and read to the school’s 875 students.

School officials and other educators say reading aloud to children at such events increases their interest in books.

“We’re trying to show a purpose to reading and connect its importance beyond school,” said Linda Reed, principal at McKinley Elementary. “Kids remember days like this later in their lives. It’s a big event that really makes an impact on them.”

Community Read-Ins are held at schools across the country to provide role models for children while building literacy skills. These events are similar to the Read Across America campaign, launched two years ago by the National Education Assn., the country’s largest teachers union. Teachers say they welcome the readers because students are excited to see fresh faces in their classrooms.

“The kids get to hear teachers read to them all the time,” said first-grade teacher Sandra Bucey. “It’s good for the children to see people with different professions reading and telling about its importance to them.”

The range of readers were as diverse as the school’s students, most of whom are Asian and Latino. The readers represented a wide range of professions, from firefighters and police officers to a tow truck driver and Los Angeles County Supervisor Michael Antonovich. Each read a book to the class, told about their profession and explained the role reading plays in their jobs.

“Many of our students come from different countries, so English is a second language to them,” Reed said. “I wanted to bring in readers of different ethnicities and backgrounds to give the students role models they can relate to.”

Although no official studies have been done to show the effectiveness of Community Read-Ins, reading aloud to a child improves comprehension and listening skills, according to Dave McGloin, coordinator of Read Across America. He also said Community Read-Ins are worthwhile events that generate an interest in reading.

“The degree of success for events like these depends on the degree to which they capture the children’s imaginations,” McGloin said.

“You’re trying to show that reading can take them to wonderful places, but some read-ins will fail because they won’t capture how special reading really is.”

Reed said many of her students look for books relating to the profession of the guest readers after the Community Read-Ins.

“The kids really do get excited and want to learn more about their visitors,” Reed said. “It’s one way to get them to read on their own.”

Carl Holten, a manager at Dickson Towing, got some first-graders excited about his tow trucks.

After reading a book about trucks to the class, he demonstrated how a tow truck works by hitching his Ford Bronco to it.

“Days like this definitely show the kids what opportunities and jobs are available to them, and the way to get there is through reading,” Holten said.

After landing his helicopter, Morrison visited Bucey’s first-grade class and read to them. Morrison asked the children questions about the story as he read and cracked a few jokes that made the children laugh.

Later, he explained his duties as a helicopter pilot and how he helps rescue people. He said reading helped him get to where he is today.

“Do you want to know how to be a helicopter pilot?” Morrison asked the class.

“Yes,” they all chanted.

“First, you have to listen to your parents and teachers and do what they say,” Morrison said. “Second, you have to stay in school and keep on reading.”

For Morrison, the experience was rewarding--and a nice break from work.

“I’m glad I was here to help give the kids a role model to look up to,” he said. “My job is usually sitting at the station waiting for an alarm to go off, so to be here seeing these kids’ faces is fun.”