Central students provide enjoyment to seniors by reading to them weekly

By Donna Hilton
Published: Thursday, May 8, 2008 12:53 PM CDT
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Children aren't a common sight in a nursing home, but, thanks to a program at Central Primary School, residents of one facility receive visitors once a week.

Students from Central take books to read to residents at Twin Rivers Health and Rehabilitation Center, a program called Pages Across the Ages.

Carrie Sharp, the students' teacher, received a grant from the CONE Foundation at Arkadelphia High School to buy books for the students to read to the residents of the center. "I wanted to give the kids an opportunity to read to others," she said. By reading aloud, students learn how to pronounce words better and how to enunciate words, or how to speak more clearly, Sharp said.

The program has also been a "great way to connect the ages," Sharp said. "It's been a really neat experience for both the kids and the adults."

The residents at Twin Rivers also benefit from the program, said Corliss Manning, administrator. "We love it," she said of the program. "We've had school groups come in before, but this is fulfilling for both sides of the program."

Not only does reading aloud help the students learn, but it also shows them how easy it is to help another person. "It shows the kids that there is something they can do to help others," Manning said.

The residents at the center look forward to the kids' visits, she said. "We are thrilled when the kids come out."

Before they began the visits to the center, Sharp taught the students a unit on grandparents. The grant funds were used to buy books about grandparents, and children's relationships with older adults. "Those are the books they read to the residents," she said.

The students are allowed to choose their books and practice reading them before bringing them to the center each week. Students read to the residents of the center in the cafeteria while the residents have breakfast. Each student reads to one or two residents at a time, often changing places to share their books with more than one group during a single session.

After they read, the students do a craft project with the residents or simply sit and talk with them. "Just having someone there to sit and smile at them can make all the difference," Manning said.

The students and the residents benefit from the program, Sharp and Manning said. The residents look forward to the visits, Manning said.

The students are so committed to the project that one student, who had to miss school for a doctor's appointment, returned to school just so she could go to the center to read. "She was so upset that she might miss this," her mother said.

Employees at the center regularly hold activities for the residents, but programs such as reading to the residents provide valuable interaction with others, Manning said. Projects such as these help the residents at the center stay sharp mentally. It also helps to occupy their time and entertain them. "They enjoy (the program) more than bingo and other things," she said.

Manning hopes the program will continue next year when school starts again. "We would love to have them back," she said.