Bringing the Book Fair Outdoors

 Students at Matthew Paterson Elementary did not miss out on their beloved Scholastic Book Fair thanks to creative thinking which brought the book fair safely outdoors.

It was all smiles as students had the opportunity to browse tables and shelves of books spread out on the playground's basketball court last week at the PTO-sponsored event. Students entered the book fair in awe seeing all the options outside, and one student happily proclaimed “You did a great job! This looks awesome.” With so many great book options, the difficult decision for students was choosing which books to buy. One young kindergarten student even made her purchase with a $5 that had been taped back together after she cut it in half thinking she could share and help a friend purchase books. 

"It was an amazing experience and we thank both Principal Kirk and Superintendent Zehr for trusting us to do this safely and effectively," said Megan Knolker, chairperson of the Matthew Paterson Elementary School PTO-sponsored book fair. "The weather held out for us all week and we all collapsed into our beds Friday night feeling so grateful and accomplished. Here’s hoping we can have many more events in the future!"

The PTO worked hard to make the event inclusive by offering evening family hours one night to accommodate parents during scheduled appointment windows, a full day of shopping for remote students, and online shopping links for those who could not attend but still wanted to purchase books.

Happy reading, Matthew Paterson Elementary students!