Something for Everyone at KES Book Fair

At the Kent Elementary School Book Fair there was something for everyone. There were picture books for new readers and chapter books for more advanced readers. There were books written in Spanish and even books written in braille.

“This is a great book,” said Mackenzie, a kindergartner who picked up an Usborne Touchy-Feely Book entitled “That’s Not My Pumpkin, It’s Teeth Are Too Bumpy.”

“I can feel the pumpkin,” she said. The book also included braille on every page.

A large group of parent volunteers helped at the fair, leading children to books they might like and helping them figure out the costs and how many books they could afford to buy.   

“The book fair is our biggest fundraiser of the year,” said Marie Camacho, the Kent Elementary School PTO President. “We hold one in the fall and one in the spring. Half the proceeds go to buying books for the school and we use the other half to provide events throughout the school year.”

Each of Carmel Central School District’s three elementary schools offer book fairs are run by their parent organizations and parents are a big part of the event at each school.

Karina Torres came in to help the children in her son Liam’s class find just the right books.

“I helped when my older son was here and now he’s in sixth grade,” Torres said. “He came with me here the other night to help set up the fair for the little kids. It’s part of his community service. This is a real community-wide event.”