For our annual Holiday Literacy Celebration this year, Saint Mary’s Hall‘s National English Honor Society chapter, the Charles Dickens Chapter, hosted the Boys and Girls Club for a night of cookie decorating and reading. From the moment they spilled out of their school bus, the children had smiles stretched across their faces, enthusiastic about their new adventure. Stacking their plates with pizza slices, our guests eagerly inquired about our plans for the night. I spent most of my time with two brothers, Marquel and Marquo, chatting about baseball, sugar, and mushrooms.
After munching down their dinner, the children were split up by gender, the gals decorating sugar cookies with Christmas trees and flowers, while the boys visited our guest reader, Miss Anastasia. Enthralled by her animated character voices and facial expressions, the children giggled and gasped at just the right times during the plots of Bad Kitty and Poor Puppy. When one member appeared in a Bad Kitty costume, the kids absolutely exploded with excitement, hugging and running around with their new favorite character. The girls spent some time in the world of Bad Kitty next, while the boys turned their cookies into sprinkle cakes and famous basketball jerseys.
After bagging up extra cookies for the ride home, each of the children chose their own book, which we purchased with our chapter’s bake sale profits. As the children loaded onto the bus, they held their new books to their chests, arguing about who loves Bad Kitty more—and believe it or not, their smiles had even grown a little bit wider.
How does your chapter promote literacy and engage with your community?
Emery Wright
Charles Dickens Chapter, President
Saint Mary’s Hall, San Antonio, TX
