In 2022, the Rotary Club of Easley, South Carolina partnered with the School District of Pickens County, the Pickens County YMCA and United Way of Pickens County on their children’s literacy initiative called Camp iRock. Held in three locations throughout the county, struggling students in completed Grades K-3rd grade received remedial reading instruction during school vacation.
The Rotary Club of Easley added a special initiative to read to classrooms of Easley- area Camp iRock students called “Easley Rotarians in Action at Camp iRock”. Every Wednesday during the six-week Camp iRock program, approximately 6 Easley Rotarians met with classrooms of approximately 20 students during their classroom reading instruction portion of this summer
program. Easley Rotarians would introduce themselves and talk about their profession (one of our club’s VOCATIONAL goals). Easley Rotarians would then read to the students several age-appropriate books that had been selected by the reading teacher. One Easley Rotarian brought his puppets and used them to read to his classroom of students. Another Easley Rotarian, a dentist, brought toothbrushes to give to each student in his classroom following reading several books. Another Rotarian brought KIND breakfast bars, distributed them and encouraged his classroom of students to be kind to other students, their parents and their teachers.
The Rotary Club of Easley purchased a copy of the children’s book Parker, the Purple Penguin for each of the 175 students attending the Easley-area Camp iRock. The book was selected by the School District of Pickens County because it aligned perfectly with the curriculum of Camp iRock, and because it emphasized the Seven Strengths of a Super Reader instructional-strategy. They invited the author, Marybeth Wishart, to come to Camp iRock to read her book to the students and talk about her inspiration to write the story. The smiles on the faces of 175 students when they met a real- live author, and when they were given their own, personalized copy of this popular book were priceless!