Tyrone celebrates memorable characters on Read Across America Day

By Kendra Wertz, Photo Editor|March 18, 2015

A+display+was+created+outside+of+the+library+with+the+results+of+the+student+surveys

Kendra Wertz

A display was created outside of the library with the results of the student surveys

Tyrone held its annual Read Across America Day on Monday, March 2th.  Read Across America Day was started by the National Education Association in honor of Theodore Geisel, a.k.a. Dr. Seuss.

According to the NEA, Read Across America is an annual program that “calls for every child in every community to celebrate reading on March 2, the birthday of beloved children’s author Dr. Seuss.”

“I think reading rocks… it’s important to encourage reading, “said English teacher and Tyrone’s Read Across America coordinator Mrs. Leah Deskevich, “we could go places and do things [we] thought [were] never possible by… opening a book.”

Each year Tyrone High School chooses a theme and Deskevich conducts a survey of students and staff about their favorite books, authors, characters or some other book-related theme.

This year the question was “What is your favorite fictional or nonfictional character?”

Students and staff voted at the end of first period.

Here are the results:

  1. Tyrone’s most favorite characters are from John Green’s books, namely Hazel Grace Lancaster and Augustus Waters from A Fault in Our Stars.
  2. A close second were Suzanne Collins’ Hunger Games characters Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark.
  3. A whole host of Harry Potter characters.
  4. Greg Heffley from Diary of a Wimpy Kid.
  5. Characters from Percy Jackson and company.
  6. Tris and Four from the Divergent series.
  7. Brian from Gary Paulsen’s Hatchet series.
  8. Thomas from The Maze Runner series.
  9. Ninth place was a tie between Jonas from The Giver and Stan, Seth and Kendra Sorenson from Fablehaven.

In honor of RAA week library assistant Gabby McClarren also created a “favorite character wall display” outside of the library.

Chelsea Miller, A junior at Tyrone Area High School, expressed her excitement.  “I voted for Paper Towns because it was [a] highly recommended book,” said Miller.

“It’s important to support reading and it’s nice to celebrate literacy,” said Deskevich.

In the future Deskevich hopes to see Read Across America Day to continue to soar in our school district.