This year’s annual Dictionary Day Program events will commence on March 12 and include four community celebrations of words and reading at Long Beach Public Library branches throughout the city. The events follow the gift of a dictionary/thesaurus to every Long Beach Unified School District third grade student at the start of the school year.
Every year since 2003, the Long Beach Public Library Foundation and the Earl B. and Loraine H. Miller Foundation join forces to promote literacy for local students. Over 120,000 dictionary/thesauruses have been given to Long Beach third grade students since the program’s inception thanks to the generosity of the Miller Foundation.
According the Campaign for Grade Level Reading, when children enter the fourth grade their lessons shift. Instead of learning to read, they read to learn. Dictionary Day events help students navigate this crucial time by teaching dictionary use through fun and creative activities designed to help improve reading comprehension.
“For many of the children our program serves, the dictionary/thesaurus we provide is the first book they own. Learning how to look up words and research proper language can help students become resourceful learners, active readers, good writers, and creative thinkers.” said Walter M. Florie, president of the Miller Foundation Board of Trustees.
Dictionary Day events are free and open to all elementary school students and their families:
Check out the LBTV segment below of last year’s Dictionary Days program.
