HOME TOWN KIDS "BOOK" A CIRCUS
Circus Chimera Works With Local Schools To Provide
Incentives For Youthful Readers
Before it was the basis for Circus Chimera's critically acclaimed 2006 show, Alice In Wonderland was a book.
And Circus Chimera would like kids to read it.
Or any one of half a dozen circus-themed books available in their own school library.
Upon finishing the book, students are invited to either write or draw a short summary of what they've just read. In exchange, they'll receive an official Certificate of Completion good for one free admission to a Circus Chimera show.
"It started off as a way to let kids and their families know when Circus Chimera was coming to town," says genial Byron Bowman, Circus Chimera's Director of Special Events. "But it's taken on a life of its own. Since our season launched back in February, nine school districts have opted in to the reading encouragement program. In El Paso alone, that was fifteen hundred students! Coming up in Palmdale, we're looking at possibly as many as three hundred students."
Sponsors take the lead, Bowman goes on to explain. Sponsors are those local community service organizations that partner with Circus Chimera for many of its engagements. In this way, a sizeable portion of all Circus Chimera ticket sales return to the community coffers.
Sponsors present the idea of the educational reading program to local school districts or individual elementary and middle schools who, in turn, decide to opt in. The program is designed to have very low administrative needs, utilizing reading materials already at hand in participating schools' own library's own catalogs. Additionally, those students who love to read but who may not be able to express their thoughts well in English words yet are not discriminated against: children may either write a paragraph or draw a picture to satisfy the Certificate of Completion requirement. Teachers act as judges of whether or not the criteria have been fulfilled.
To learn more about Circus Chimera's innovative reading encouragement program, please contact Byron Bowman at 304-634-0691 or by email at ByronCircusChimera@hotmail.com
Circus Chimera tickets may be ordered by phone (1-888-663-7464) or online (www.circuschimera.com)