"READING FAIR" ENCOURAGES READING FOR RUN

Students at L.J. Schultz Middle School in Cape Girardeau read more than 50,000 pages during the school's Reading Fair last school year.

The program, coordinated by Bonnie Matzat and carried out by Matzat, Mary Wilhite, Carolyn Ford and Annette Schuch, encourages reading for fun.

"This is the third year for the program," said Matzat. "We've made some changes in the program over the past two years to involve more students."

More than 350 students participated in last year's program.

When the Reading Club was started in 1993, students remained after school for Read and Feed, to read and eat cookies.

More students wanted to participate, said Matzat. "In 1994, we changed the program to a classroom Reading Fair, with awards of new books to students for reading a certain amount of pages and making a report on those pages.

YELL generated a $500 grant for the reading club program during the 1993-94 school year and continued that grant last year. Matzat said the money was used to provide books for students who reach their goal.

Every student reaching their goal, based on their reading levels, could select a new book to keep.

"We purchased paperback books for the project," said Matzat. "For some of the children these books were the first books they ever owned."

The school has received $500 grants from YELL over the past two school years.

"The program is great," said Matzat. "It's a wonderful reading program, and we're applying for another Yell grant this year."

Like other reading programs in the area, the Reading Fair is designed to create interests in the care and reading of books.

Matzat said the school was gearing up for the 1995-96 program . "We usually don't get into it until school is well under way,"she said.

The program is conducted in the school now, so there is no afternoon transportation problem.