Gotta Keep Reading

As of today almost half a million people have watched the video "Gotta Keep Reading" made by students at a middle school in Florida. Like many other useful and valuable items about reading, it was made famous by Oprah Winfrey who featured it on one of her TV shows. Any teacher, parent, or librarian's heart will be warmed by watching the students, each one clutching a book, sway to the music and sing about the joys of reading a good book. The children look natural and happy, but it would be fun to see them actually sit down and start reading those books. Someone ought to consider having a sit-in for book reading, where students would sit down in the schoolyard and read quietly for a few minutes. That might be an effective video too, although the sound track would be far different. Let's hope this video encourages kids not only to pick up a book and sing, but to have some quiet time to settle down and read.