Godwin Heights — You could tell how excited second-grader Wynne Beukema was about being a published author.
She was one of the first to arrive on publication day, and once the doors opened to the program room at the Kent District Library’s Wyoming branch, she ran in to see the book she and her classmates created.
“I was kind of nervous and excited,” Wynne said of the project and seeing her classroom book, “What If…”, for the first time.
This is the second year the KDL Wyoming branch has partnered with schools in the Wyoming area to have classrooms create their own books.
Led by youth librarian Jackie Boss, the program is made available to K-4 grade schools within the city.
Students work as a class to create their own story and artwork, and the library has two copies published. The West Godwin books, along with books by classes at Potter’s House and Wyoming’s Gladiola Elementary School are available for checkout at the KDL Wyoming branch.
“I think it is important because it shows the students that ‘My voice matters,’” said West Godwin second-grade teacher Cassie Atkinson, whose class, along with the second-grade classes of Nishel Timm and Rebekah Hetrick also participated. “It is also another way for students to write other than practice writing. It is a meaningful way to write for a purpose.”
Wynne said her teacher, Timm, gave the students a bundle of words to help them write their portion. Wynne’s bundle included the word “candy” and she wrote about how if you eat candy you could get cavities.
Atkinson’s class book was based on the “If You Give a Mouse A Cookie” series by Laura Joffe Numeroff.
Using the phrase “If you give a second-grader…,” students talked about different things they had learned during the year.
Valerie Lopez’s section was about what happens if you give a second-grader a compliment. On her page, Valerie wrote, a compliment makes a person feel good and they will compliment others back.
“I never felt that I would have a book in the library,” Valerie said. “I felt I was too shy.”
Read more from Godwin Heights:
• Second-graders learn about communities by doing
• Sixth-graders honor youngest Holocaust victims
