It’s Story Time!

Courtney Soon

Quoting Garfield’s saying, “I hate Mondays”; the senior class, on the other hand, had a dose of “cuteness overload” to kick-start their usual Monday morning on January 28, 2019.

Added with the joy of escaping B-Block for the first fifteen minutes, seniors from choir class received the opportunity to spend time with the preschoolers and read some stories to them. It was one of the last service projects from the Class of 2019, a way of giving back to the school before they leave.

When the seniors proceeded to the preschool rooms, they were approached by adorably shy, little blue “minions”, each holding a couple of children’s books, waiting for them to be read to. One by one, each preschooler’s name was called and paired with a senior. Then, every senior led their little preschooler to a comfortable corner to begin reading storybooks that had bright, colorful pages of illustrations and engaging pullouts.

Sofia Park (12) recounted, “I was so touched because the little girl came up to me herself! I read her Dr. Seuss books, and she loved it so much! I loved reading my childhood books, too. At the end, she gave me a HUG and that absolutely made my morning.”

The preschoolers were very affectionate and looked up to the seniors greatly. Seniors also automatically raised their voices to a higher-pitched tone when reading aloud to make the stories appear interesting to the preschoolers. Some seniors had preschoolers sit on their laps and interacted through the storybooks in order to get to know them. Lydia Kim (12) and her preschooler were enjoying themselves and even singing nursery rhymes such as “The Eensy Weensy Spider” and “Happy Birthday” together in the midst of reading.

Unfortunately, good things always come to an end. Because of their short attention span, each preschooler jumped up immediately when Mrs. Anderson, the preschool teacher, told them it was their snack time.

“I really enjoyed reading with the preschool kids. I loved the fact that I got the opportunity to spend time with them because we usually don't get to hang out or play with the preschool kids since we have different schedules,” said Natasha Palanivel (12). “It was a nice way for the seniors to reach out to the youngest grades at Dalat.”

The service project was a precious time, not only for the preschoolers but also the seniors; it allowed them to return to their stress-free selves and lively express their inner children before the time of university and graduation approaches.

Reading to the Preschoolers, Photo Credit: Mrs. Jacki Steinkamp