Wednesday, August 19, 2015

Literary School Lockers in Biloxi Excite Students About Reading

A couple of Biloxi (Mississippi) schoolteachers decided to do something special for the students who will be frequenting Biloxi Junior High's eighth-grade hallway this school year.  The 189 lockers in that hallway, once described as "locker eyesores," have been transformed into colorful book spines - and the students are loving the idea.


The new look in Biloxi Junior High School's Eighth-Grade Hallway

According to ABC's Good Morning America:
“We’ve gotten exactly the response we wanted,” Williams, who is also the ELA Department chairwoman, told ABC News. “Students who never thought about reading are now asking questions.”
Echoed Butera: “Students are bragging about the books they’ve read. All of a sudden it’s this badge of honor to be able to say they’ve read these books in the hallway.
“All they want to know is where are these books and how do I get my hands on them,” she said.

So some creativity on the part of two caring teachers added to a lot of elbow grease and a little help from friends, sponsors, and volunteers, and suddenly a group of kids is more excited about books than they ever have been in their lives.

That's what I call a big win for everyone involved.  Thanks, ladies...and all who helped by painting lockers or picking up some of the costs incurred.  Great job by all.

(There are more great pictures on the ABC site I linked too up above.  The picture I've clipped here was provided to ABC by Elizabeth Williams, one of the two teachers who came up with this brilliant idea.)  The other teacher's name, by the way, is Stacy Butera.
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6 comments:

  1. That is both aesthetically pleasing and brilliant!

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    1. There are still some great teachers out there despite all the problems in our schools. These ladies deserve our thanks and our applause.

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  2. Wow, so awesome! My kids' school don't have lockers anymore, let alone pretty ones like these :(

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    1. I can't imagine how kids make it without lockers these days, Susan. My grandkids are carrying around books that seem to weigh more than ever. I worry that those backpacks are doing some permanent spinal damage to kids nowadays.

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  3. That is awesome. Sure would make it easy to find your locker- you don't have to scan tiny numbers but look for the bold color and title. Love how it's getting kids interested in books. I wish they'd do something like this at my kids' school.

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  4. It's a cool project for sure. I hope other schools copy the idea and use it to motivate their own students.

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