Justin Crutchfield looked up and down as he slowly walked while dragging his index finger across the many books on the shelves in Jill Baird’s room at Ninth District Elementary School.
He stopped and pulled the book If you Give a Moose a Muffin.
“I want a book like this,” he said.
Justin, a kindergartener, was one of three students at Ninth District who selected books last week to take home. The occasion was their birthday.
The books are their gifts to keep.
At Ninth District, all students celebrate their birthdays by selecting a book. It is part of the Birthday Book Program that Baird started earlier this school year. The school purchased $4,000 worth of books, thanks to a grant that the district received. Baird, a school psychologist who is in her second year at Ninth, began the book program to foster a love of reading with the students and as a way to get to know and develop positive relationships with them.
The program has been a hit.
Students call Baird the birthday book lady. When she goes into the cafeteria, children run up to her to give her a hug. Some raise their hands and tell her it is their birthday or it is coming soon.
“It has been the light of my day,” Mrs. Baird said. “It’s a positive interaction with the kids.”
Thus far, she has distributed 250 books.
She will have to restock soon, she said.
For students who have birthdays during the summer or school breaks, Baird sets aside special times to make sure they get their turn at getting a book. For instance, children who have birthdays in the summer selected their books in January and February.
The birthday library contains books for all ages. Some of the popular books are Dog Man, Diary of a Whimpy Kid and Junie B. Jones.
Chardonay Little selected Diary of a Whimpy Kid – Big Shot. The fifth-grade student, who turned 11, said she has plenty of books at home but is happy to add this one to her collection.
“It is cool to get a book because you get to read it,’’ she said.
Another student who turned 7 selected the book The Princess in Black.
When students arrive, Baird tells them: “You can pick any book you want.”
She also gives them a personalized note that they can use as a bookmarker. Justin’s note: “You are one of a kind.”
When asked how old he turned, Justin flashed a big smile and held up six fingers.
He said he plans to read the book to his baby sister.
Covington Independent Public Schools