Port Washington Union Free School District’s John J. Daly Elementary School recently hosted its opening assembly for the building’s 4th Annual One School, One Book program, a literacy initiative involving the entire school community in the joy of reading.
The assembly kicked off with two surprises from Daly’s library media specialist, Kim Pinto—a lemon tree for the building’s library and a special performance from teachers.
Four of Daly’s teachers channeled their inner acting expertise for an entertaining skit where they sold and purchased lemonade from one another with a bit of help from Kerin Schieck’s third-grade students. The skit demonstrated the meaning of teamwork and how the combined action of people working together is effective and efficient.
Pinto facilitated the read-aloud of Jaqueline Davies’ The Lemonade War. It tells the story of a competitive pair of siblings, Evan and Jessie, who try to outsell one another at their respective lemonade stands. Despite the sibling’s differences, the two finally come to the realization that if they join forces, they have the ability to create a very successful business in the lemonade industry. From the book, Daly’s students learned about the importance of cooperation, new business vocabulary, and how to develop resolutions to disagreements with other individuals.
Following the opening assembly, students will continue to read one chapter each night. During class the next day, students will answer one trivia question about the chapter—students with the best answers will be announced at the end of each school day.
In the library’s makerspace area, students will have the opportunity to hone their creativity and imagination by designing a “DALY Button.” Throughout the month of February, the building will sell the buttons as an initiative to fundraise for Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation, an organization dedicated to raising awareness of pediatric cancer and supporting the children and their families facing the challenge of the disease.
