Kaki at STEAM Academy marks Rockland Reading Day with pajama day, therapy dog and multisensory reading activities

Kaki at STEAM Academy in Spring Valley held Rockland Reading Day during a recorded session in which teachers and students spent the day focused on reading in varied formats, including a pajama day and a visit from a therapy dog named Lexi.

Teachers described the event as an effort to promote a love of reading and to let students choose texts that interest them. "It's such a fun day today. The whole idea is really just promoting a love of reading and literacy and having the students engage with books and guest readers," said Teacher, a teacher at East Ramapo Central School District (Spring Valley). The same teacher noted that the school relaxed its dress code for the day so students could "cozy up with a book and enjoy reading all day long."

School staff emphasized that students were encouraged to read in any format they preferred: physical books, audiobooks, articles or digital text. "There's no specific guidelines that they have to be reading a fiction novel," said Assistant Teacher, describing the event's open approach to format and content. Staff said some students used Chromebooks to look up unfamiliar words in real time.

Teachers said the school uses multisensory reading methods to build decoding and encoding skills, then gives students choice to apply those skills independently. "In our classrooms, we help our students gain confidence as readers by using multisensory reading methods to help them learn how to decode and encode words," the Teacher said, adding that students often demonstrate the strategies they learn to classmates. Teachers also highlighted work on breaking down multisyllabic words so students can access more complex texts.

Staff described specific supports for English language learners, including teaching cognates—words that look or sound similar across languages—to help students recognize and understand English vocabulary. The Teacher noted many books used during the event include strong visual supports, and that bilingual texts were part of the selection; the Host said she planned to read El Pecos Con Sombrero during classroom visits.

Organizers framed Rockland Reading Day as both a celebration and a practical classroom exercise: giving students voice and choice in reading while reinforcing instructional strategies used year-round. The Teacher said both her and a colleague are alumni of the district and that bringing the event to current students felt "full circle." The Host closed the recorded segment by thanking teachers and expressing eagerness to join classroom reading activities.

No formal decisions or votes were recorded in the transcript excerpt.