United Way holding virtual reading event
"Read Across Woo" will provide an opportunity for students and families to engage in books and hear stories read aloud by local readers from across Wooster.
United Way of Wayne and Holmes Counties announced a new reading program, “Read Across Woo,” which was developed in partnership with Wooster City Schools, Wayne County Public Library and the Wooster City Police Department. “Read Across Woo” started May 18 and will run through the end of summer.
“It’s like a reading scavenger hunt,” said Katie Koglman, executive director of UWWH. “This program gives kids a chance to get out and about with their family, making literacy the focus.”
Kids and their families are encouraged to follow a map to different sites in the city, where they will find flyers with QR codes to scan and in turn hear stories from local celebrity readers.
“We are incentivizing families to play along with a chance to win after visiting five locations,” Koglman said. “All kids have to do is use the hashtag #ReadAcrossWoo and post their photo on Instagram for their chance at a drawing. We think it will bring a lot of excitement to the community.”
“The Wooster City School District wants to continue to build a culture of literacy within our schools and community,” said Karen Arbogast, director of elementary education at Wooster City Schools. “While ‘Reading Under the Lights’ will not be taking place this year, ‘Read Across Woo’ will provide an opportunity for our students and families to engage in books and read aloud by local readers from across our city. We are excited to partner with United Way, Wayne County Public Library, the Wooster City Police Department to make this happen.”
Locations will be constantly added and changed on the map, which can be found at www.tinyurl.com/readacrosswoomap. Some of the celebrity readers will include teachers, administrative staff, police officers and the fire chief. This event is aimed at families with children in pre-k to sixth grade.