Read Across America Day, also known as READ, is a celebration that encourages students to fall in love with reading. It is held on March 2, which is the birthday of famous American author Dr. Suess, though festivities last for an entire week. Schools across the country take part in this commemoration by promoting reading and activities involving books. For Atlantic Community School District, READ has always been a big deal, involving Dr. Seuss-inspired dress-up days and educational games. According to an email sent by principal Heather McKay, the dress-up days for the high school include;

Monday, Feb. 28: Red and white day

Tuesday, March 1: Animal print/stripe day

Wednesday, March 2: Backward/wacky day

Thursday, March 3: Green day

Friday, March 4: Crazy sock day

On the morning of READ, kids from Washington Elementary came to the high school to be read to by the high schoolers. Each seminar student was partnered to read with one or more elementary students. The kids got to pick books and read them aloud with each other. The students did this for about 20 minutes before returning to their correct school buildings and resuming their day.

Some ways that other schools celebrate READ includes having a “dress up like a character day” where students dress as a book character. They also play games where they guess the title of different books and try to create the best poster for a book.