Book Week Shows its 'Wild' Side

As kindergartners at Chartiers Valley Primary School listened closely to a reading of “Where the Wild Things Are,” a different kind of Wild Thing acted out each page.

The Washington Wild Thing, mascot for the minor league baseball team in Washington County, helped read to the students Thursday morning as the school celebrated Read Across America Week.

Christine Blaine, an employee for the baseball team, read the book while the Wild Thing rolled his arms in the motion of waves and surveyed the gymnasium pretending he was peering through a forest.

“You know what the fun part of reading is?” Blaine asked the students. “Reading can take you into a dream world.”

Blaine and the Wild Thing then entertained the students with a reading of “Casey at the Bat.” After reading that story, she told the students that there are lessons that can be learned from failure.

“Sometimes you have to see the bad side so you can appreciate the good things,” Blaine said.

Other “celebrity readers,” including television anchor Andrew Stockey, the Cat in the Hat, Collier police Chief Thomas Devin and high school basketball coach Tim McConnell, also spent Thursday reading stories to the children.

On Tuesday, students were encouraged to bring one book to “swap” with others kids at the school in order to read something new.

“They were so excited about that,” kindergarten reading teacher Taryn Brigg said. “The kids were (sitting) in the hall reading. It was unbelievable.”

Today, students will dress up in costumes to show what they would like to do for a living when they grow up.