A new reading challenge has also helped fuel the bookish energy on campus this year. Last year, Think College Now students for the first time failed to win a reading challenge, falling short in their quest to read 100 million words. This fall they returned with renewed determination (see graph below for progress). The reward: If they reach 100 million by the end of the school year, Principal David Silver will shave his head (and, if the kids have their way, leave the letters “TCN” in the back).
As part of the agreement, Silver promised not to cut his hair all year. At press time, his hair had already become unmanageable. “It is out of control,” he says. “But, like I said when I spent the day on the roof: Whatever it takes!” His unruly head of hair has the attention of TCN students, too. When Silver walks the halls, he’s met with playful taunts (“I’ve been reading a lot, Mr. Silver…”) and scissor-like hand motions.
TCN’s 20-member Student Council has shown great leadership in rallying kids to read. “This year, more than any year [before], the Student Council members are taking on the responsibility of the students meeting the reading goal,” says Student Council Advisor and TCN Science Teacher Brenda Tuohy.
Using a giant thermometer-style banner (it stretches across nearly the entire gym and requires all 20 members to hold it up), the Student Council updates the school every Friday on TCN’s readers’ progress toward 100 million. Depending on the news, their announcement is met with a school-wide “Sweet!” or “Bummer.”
The culture of reading on campus has inspired some unexpected projects, as well. After learning about creative reuse and recycling during TCN’s trip to Vida Verde, 4th-grader Kevin organized a school-wide book swap, with kids bringing in old books to trade for other students’ already-read books. And 5th-graders Hoai and Daniela have founded a recess club called “Run to Read.” For every six laps (one mile) a student jogs at recess, the runner gets a new book. As the girls explained, “This club will get people excited about reading, and fight childhood obesity.”
Most importantly, when TCN students speak of books they’ve read, it’s not about the number of words, but about sinking themselves into the stories and developing a life-long love for reading. As 5th-grader Ameerat says of her favorite book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, “It takes me to this other magical world.”
Every morning before Monica Purdy and Marie Sanner’s kindergarten classes, the scene is the same: Parents arrive to drop off their children – but they don’t leave. Instead, they gather at the round tables or on the alphabet carpet, and sit down to read with their kids until the school day officially begins.
Morning Reading, which began on a small scale in 2004, has become a signature Think College Now tradition. “One parent told me I was going to see a big change [in my kindergarten son’s reading ability],” says Aysha Franco, “and by Christmas, there was a total difference already in how much Xavier was reading. All this reading in the morning has paid off.”
When he enrolled his son Donavon at TCN, Russell Clemmons says he was unsure about showing up early to read with his son every morning. “I thought, ‘I’ve been out of school a whole lot of years,’” Clemmons laughs. “I was kind of apprehensive. But it’s great, it really makes a difference. Donavon is eager to learn. When I was young, we were eager to play.”
”When I began teaching at TCN in 2006, Family Reading was in place,” says Purdy. “But in the four years I’ve been here I’ve never seen anything like this. Every day I have at least 15 families reading [in my classroom]. I’ve seen students flourish as readers much earlier and with greater success than ever before.”
Jeanice Williams, TCN’s night custodian, says her son Jeki “really looks forward to it. He tells me, ‘Mommy, we can’t miss Morning Reading — come on, come on!’ The one time we actually missed it, he cried.”
A communal spirit has also come out of the mornings spent reading. “It works great,” says Sidney Knocum, whose youngest son Jaymon is in kindergarten. (Her other son, Jabari, is in 4th grade.) “If kids’ parents leave, or can’t be here, we just have them come read with us. They’re just like my own kids. Everybody feels at home, we’re like one big family.”
“It totally connects us as parents,” says Williams, who is learning Spanish. “[And the kids] appreciate the different cultures – my son speaks [about that].”
“Other schools out there say they’re diverse, but there’s no community, each group is isolated,” explains Franco. “But this kinder group has really brought us all together.”
All of the parents say the morning routine has set a tone for the kids, and they see more reading at home – and less TV. “At TCN, the principle of reading is number one,” says Franco. “[That culture] is instilling in them a love of reading.”
“I like reading [with my mom in the morning] because I want to learn and go to college,” says Knocum’s son Jaymon.
“More than any time before, the culture at TCN this year has been about reading,” says Principal David Silver. “Kids are reading before class in the morning, in the halls, after school and at home. It’s everywhere and all the time.”
Clemmons is now leading the charge to expand Morning Reading to 1st grade. “I said to my wife, ‘I guess I’ll be here every morning again next year,’” he says. “I really think [the school] should get 1st-grade Morning Reading going!”
Purdy agrees. “I hope we’re able to extend it to 1st grade,” she says, “and also replicate this year’s success with our new crop of kindergartners next year.”
A new reading challenge has also helped fuel the bookish energy on campus this year. Last year, Think College Now students for the first time failed to win a reading challenge, falling short in their quest to read 100 million words. This fall they returned with renewed determination (see graph below for progress). The reward: If they reach 100 million by the end of the school year, Principal David Silver will shave his head (and, if the kids have their way, leave the letters “TCN” in the back). 
