Newark Pre-K Holiday Reading Challenge Proudly Presents: 2020-2021 Winners

The Newark Board of Education held their Third Annual Newark Pre-K Holiday Reading Challenge during the holiday break, with hopes of fostering a love of reading and family engagement.

From December 24th to January 4th, preschoolers across the city of Newark were asked, with help from their families, to read for 20 minutes a day and to keep track of their reading by sharing reading logs and their engagement via pictures and videos on the District’s ‘Office of Early Childhood’ Instagram page @newarkprek.

At the scheduled Board Meeting on Thursday, January 28th, 2021 at 6:00 pm, Superintendent Roger León will recognize the children and their families along with the schools and centers who won first place. “We are proud of all of our students, families, schools and child care centers that participated. The current pandemic has shown us now more than ever, the importance of family partnership and engagement in our students learning process,” shared Superintendent León.

Among the winners are Noah Enechukwu, a preschooler at Camden Street School, who won first place for the most minutes read. Joining him is Alyssa S. Escobar Nicolas, a preschooler from Innovative Educational Programs, who won for posting her challenge on the Instagram page and receiving the most likes. The Child Care Center known as Newark Day at Essex County College won the title of having the highest average of minutes read among all of its enrolled students.

Ms. Samantha Lott-Velez, Executive Director of the Office of Early Childhood stated, “When children engage in reading, they learn about themselves and the world around them. The messages shared by the preschoolers on our Instagram page exhibit the social and emotional learning and character development that are so critical during these early years. The children’s expressions exhibited feelings of gratitude and kindness towards others. We are proud of all of our children for their efforts.”