Elementary schools, library celebrate Children's Book Week
By Eliav Appelbaum eliav@theacorn.com

WENDY PIERRO/Acorn Newspapers READ A BOOK- Big Springs Elementary fifth-grader Hayley Westenskow portrays "Mean Jean" from the story "The Recess Queen" with the help of author Alexis O'Neil. O'Neil spoke at Big Springs and White Oak elementaries to commemorate Children's Book Week.

This wasn't an ordinary week for elementary school students. It marked the 12th annual celebration of Children's Book Week, an event that brings to life the importance as well as the fun of reading and writing.

Elementary schools invited authors to speak during the week, and the celebration culminated with a Family Night at the Simi Valley Library on Thursday that brought together students, teachers, principals, Friends of the Library and the general public.

At Big Springs Elementary, Simi Valley children's author Alexis O'Neill spoke at three assemblies and several different classrooms Wednesday. O'Neill had been scheduled to talk at White Oak Elementary on Tuesday.

"The main thing is for kids to get the excitement of making a book, whether it's through illustrating or writing it," said O'Neill, who's published three books, "Loud Emily," "Estella's Swap" and "The Recess Queen."

"The kids can see there are real people behind the creation of books and see people get excited about books and libraries," the author continued. "Teachers are so happy. They'll say, 'You just reinforced everything I've been talking about in the classroom.'"

At Big Springs, O'Neill spoke to students during interactive assemblies, with some youngsters in costume acting out scenes from "The Recess Queen." Students also had a chance to buy the author's books and have her sign their copies.

For O'Neill, speaking at Big Springs was a family affair. Her husband, David Boeshaar, attended the school, while her grand niece and nephew, Zoey and Tommy Veazey, are current students there.

Author Bruce Hale of Santa Barbara was scheduled to speak at Vista Elementary on Tuesday and Hollow Hills Elementary on Wednesday. At Simi Elementary, Amada Irma Perez of Oxnard was to talk to students on Thursday.

Big Springs principal, Beverly Radloff, planned to lead her colleagues in a readers' theater in the Children's Book Room of the library for Thursday's festivities.

Radloff enjoys organizing the readers' theater, where students delight in seeing their respective principals on stage. This year's Family Night had a fiesta theme, and included authors Perez and Jorge Luis Orozco of Los Angeles.

"I pick one of the books, perhaps one from an author that's going to be at one of the schools, and convert it into a script," Radloff said. "I make the principals read it cold. They've never seen the script before, and sometimes the results are very humorous."

Local school PTAs helped pay for the cost of the visiting authors and worked with Friends of the Library in putting the week's events together.

"I think it's a really good event for the schools and kids," said Laurie Hoffman, PTA programs chairperson at Big Springs. "I think it helps show the kids that writing can be fun. . . . Once kids see someone other than their teacher is preaching the joys of writing, it opens their eyes."

The event started in 1995 as "Read Out" in The Oaks mall before moving to the Simi Valley Library the following year. Although Children's Book Week has been scaled down in recent years- in the past there were activities on the weekend- O'Neill thought that inviting the public to Thursday's event made the night special.

The focus, of course, is getting children hooked on books.

"My dream is to get every second-grader in Simi Valley a library card," said O'Neill, who missed her first Family Night in 12 years because she was scheduled to speak at the California School Library Association's conference in Ontario. "That'll be my next project."