Our club has donated and distributed dictionaries to the third graders in Waiakeawaena Elementary School, Waiakea Elementary School and Hilo Union Elementary School. Our club will distribute dictionaries to the fourth graders in Ka Umeke Kaeo.
Our Club Service Director and dictionary project in-charge James Tyrin wrote:
As part of Rotary's literacy efforts, each year our club donates and distributes dictionaries to the 3rd grade classrooms of Waiakeawaena Elementary School, Waiakea Elementary School, Hilo Union School, and Ka Umeke Kaeo (4th grade) This is always a great classroom project and an opportunity for you to interact with our local youth. It's a rewarding project and an opportunity to give each of the kids their own dictionary and share some knowledge with them.
At the moment, we had three Dictionary Project days in this year - Waiakeawaena Elementary School on November 8, Hilo Union Elementary School on November 18, and Waiakea Elementary School on November 26. Ideally two Rotarians visited one class room.
Rotarians handed a dictionary to each student, had students write down their name on the first page, then showed how to use the dictionary. Rotarians encouraged the students to find the words in the dictionary such as "truth", "fair" or "beneficial." Then students turned to the pages of the list of presidents or the longest word.
The goal of the Hawaii Rotary Clubs is to donate and distribute dictionaries to all the third graders in the public schools of Hawaii.