For the past two years, one of my favorite events of the year has always been the Library/Gifted program's annual Barnes and Noble Book Fair at the local mall. The store agrees to give 20% of sales for the day to our school library under the condition that we promote shopping at the store, and set up various activities, displays and shows for the district and the community at large. The more people we get to show up, the more money we make...and additionally, the more people we can attract into the store, the more different sales get counted towards our total. It's a bit ingenious on the B&N's part: they only have to donate a portion of a portion of their sales, and in return they get a solid bump in advertising for the day. I'm not sure how much it affects their bottom line, but it's like hiring a volunteer advertising firm for the afternoon. Not only that, our work serves to keep people in the story longer than they otherwise would. Even if it's just an extra 5-10 minutes, that's extra time people might buy something.
Of course, that's the (slightly) cynical take on the day. The actual reason I always like the event is that we get an excellent sample of the best clubs and activities from the entire high school. The Senior and Junior Classes work as organizers, dress up as princesses and superheroes, and read to kids. The Preschool classes put on puppet shows, the Art Honor Society handles the face-painting, while the Lit Guild hosts an hour long discussion (this year to promote the story behind the musical). Our ESL classes always turn out in force with a cultural display, and this year the Drama and French clubs also jumped in with some crafts and performances. And, while there's some prodding involved, all students are doing this on strictly volunteer basis. The clubs themselves make no money and high school kids willingly wake up early on a Saturday simply to hang out at a book store and run activities for kids. It's really a great example of the best of the school on display. Not only that, the staff always shows up to support the event, bringing their own children to participate in the activities, and purchasing gifts and novels to support the library program. A combination of capitalism, altruism, academics, and literacy...it doesn't get much better than that.
I was pleased to help "organize" the event this year as the Senior Class stepped up as one of the co-sponsors, though I use that term loosely since the flowers essentially arranged themselves. Aside from a few emails, phone calls, and personal requests, the students, clubs, and activities all took care of themselves. Just like with good teaching, you know you've got great students when all you have to do is give them a nudge, and they take it from there.
Of course, that's the (slightly) cynical take on the day. The actual reason I always like the event is that we get an excellent sample of the best clubs and activities from the entire high school. The Senior and Junior Classes work as organizers, dress up as princesses and superheroes, and read to kids. The Preschool classes put on puppet shows, the Art Honor Society handles the face-painting, while the Lit Guild hosts an hour long discussion (this year to promote the story behind the musical). Our ESL classes always turn out in force with a cultural display, and this year the Drama and French clubs also jumped in with some crafts and performances. And, while there's some prodding involved, all students are doing this on strictly volunteer basis. The clubs themselves make no money and high school kids willingly wake up early on a Saturday simply to hang out at a book store and run activities for kids. It's really a great example of the best of the school on display. Not only that, the staff always shows up to support the event, bringing their own children to participate in the activities, and purchasing gifts and novels to support the library program. A combination of capitalism, altruism, academics, and literacy...it doesn't get much better than that.
I was pleased to help "organize" the event this year as the Senior Class stepped up as one of the co-sponsors, though I use that term loosely since the flowers essentially arranged themselves. Aside from a few emails, phone calls, and personal requests, the students, clubs, and activities all took care of themselves. Just like with good teaching, you know you've got great students when all you have to do is give them a nudge, and they take it from there.
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