Literacy Quest, a fair-style family literacy event, was hosted by Kennedy Middle School on Thursday night. The middle school welcomed parents and students from five additional schools: Chukker Creek Elementary, Millbrook Elementary, East Aiken School of the Arts, Oakwood-Windsor Elementary and Aiken Intermediate School.
Around 50 booths were decked out with educational games and activities, from Harry Potter trivia to forensic mystery solving. Representatives of the Augusta GreenJackets came to promote their reading program, and South Aiken High School’s NJROTC program held a scavenger hunt.
One table was called “Books: Starring You,” and gave students a chance to have their picture superimposed onto the cover of a book. Ashley O’Neal, who promotes instructional technology within the Aiken County Public School District, was helping run this table, and said that Literacy Quest is all about “anything that fosters a love of learning.”
Kennedy Middle School’s library media specialist, Michelle King, was inspired to start the event several years ago after seeing something similar being done in Lancaster County while at an education conference. This year marks the fifth time the school has hosted Literacy Quest, and King talked about how rewarding it is to organize annually.
“It’s a big event that takes a lot to pull off… I am very proud of it, it’s super cool,” she said.
King also said the event gives elementary school students who will be attending their middle school in the future a chance to familiarize themselves with the campus in a laid-back way.
The school’s gym was buzzing with energy as students and families enjoyed hands-on activity stations manned by teachers and community partners. Patricia Sinclair was there representing SC DISCUS, a 24/7 program that helps students with their research through the South Carolina State Library, and she said that literacy nights are vital in helping children understand the resources that are available to them.
“If a child can read, the sky’s the limit, and they can do anything that they want to do if they become good readers,” she said. “So, to me, that’s really the main reason to do something like this, to help them be successful in life.”
Catherine Beck, a teacher from East Aiken School of the Arts, said that events like these show students the relevance of literacy skills in everyday life.
“They see that literacy is important, they connect it to their real world,” she said. “They get lots of fun out of it, so it makes it exciting for them.”
Garrett Taylor, a Kennedy Middle School student, said “this is my second year coming, [because] I did it last year in seventh grade, and I think it’s pretty cool.”
Taylor said his favorite activities at the event are the ones that have to do with coding, one of his biggest interests.
Another student, Layla Lancaster, said she doesn’t like to read — but when asked if she would start reading more after the event, she said “probably!”
