A Celebration of Literacy

The Lower School engaged in a variety of activities throughout the year to support literacy throughout the community. During the month of February, 295 students from junior kindergarten through grade five participated in the March of Dimes Reading Champions program in conjunction with the Brookside library. The school has been a part of this program for the last fifteen years and has always been one of the largest contributors in the country.

This fall, Girls’ Middle School 8th grade raised over $600.00 raised to purchase books and magazine subscriptions for children and teens who spend hours each day in treatment of cancer and other illnesses at the children's center of the University of Michigan Hospital. The Girls’ Middle School also sponsored a book drive in April to benefit the children served by toPontiac Oakland Family Services. Donations for this book drive will conclude on May 3rd, which was officially declared as "AIMS Literacy Day" in the state of Michigan by Governor Jennifer Granholm.

Every Wednesday, the Boys Middle School devotes time to silent reading. The Boys Middle School libraries offer numerous book talks for each grade level during the year, general dealing with new books that have arrived in the library. This year, the Newbery Award winning author Christopher Paul Curtis visited with middle school students in April.

The Upper School kicked-off literacy activities this year with a visit to campus by Dr. Kevin Boyle, author of Arc of Justice. Dr. Boyle was the featured speaker in the first community read, where students, faculty, and parents read and then gathered at a public lecture to discuss the book. Dr. Boyle returned to campus on February 16th to spend a second day with upper and middle school students, where he was also a featured panelist at the Black History Assembly in a discussion about public education in Detroit. This year's World Affairs Seminar, held on February 24th, focused on the theme of "Technoglobalization: Are You Ready for the 'Flat World?'" Based on The New York Times Foreign Affairs columnist Thomas Friedman's bestselling book The World is Flat: A History of the 21st Century, the seminar focused on how globalization is affecting world economy, environment, security, education, technology, and culture to essentially create a "flat" world. The keynote speaker, and featured speaker for the Emily Fisher Lecture Series this year, was Kingswood alumna Carole L. Brookins.

The AIMS Literacy Project is a statewide celebration and focus on the uniqueness, contributions, diversity and rich educational environments offered by the independent schools of Michigan. The project is a collaborative effort among the 29 schools and over 10,000 children to improve the literacy of students and the communities they serve.

If you have any questions about Cranbrook's involvement with the AIMS Literacy Project, please contact Laurie Crum at 248-645-3611 or lcrum@cranbrook.edu