By DAVID MARLOWE

You just haven’t lived until you have perched on the top of an elementary school desk and read “The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Dumb Stories” aloud to 23 or 24 chattering, giggly, pajama-clad fifth- graders.

“You’ll enjoy it,” promised John L. Ory principal Teri Noel, “and you may pick the time that fits your schedule.” She had just invited me to participate as a celebrity reader, in the National Education Association’s “Read Across America” celebration at John L. Ory elementary school last Friday.

The nationwide event, celebrating the joys of reading, is the largest literacy event in the U.S. and also honors famous children’s books author, Dr. Seuss, whose birthday was March 2. The purpose of “Read Across America” is to motivate children to read, thus cultivating a skill, which not only will empower them as students, but also will broaden their knowledge and enrich their vocabularies. Reading can be a lifelong source of enjoyment, as well as possibly the single most important skill a student develops.

“Read Across America” is an annual event held throughout the U.S. and in several foreign countries as well. According to the NEA, last year’s celebration included more than 35 million readers of all ages.

And enjoy it, I did! The children at John L. Ory were allowed a “dress-down day” in honor of the celebration. The fifth-graders I read to were outfitted for a day of lounging around with a good book. Some wore their favorite pajamas or robes, others just dressed casually. All were obviously excited about the special day and its events. Tables and desks had been moved to the perimeters of the room and sleeping bags, blankets and pallets covered the floor. No, allow me to rephrase that…children covered the floor; all spread out in a giggling, inter-twined mass of pent-up energy.

So, for approximately 30 minutes, yours truly did as much animated reading as I could possibly muster, to the seeming enjoyment of the youngsters. With each short tale from “The Stinky Cheese Man” beginning with the traditional “Once upon a time…” it didn’t take but a few minutes before the whole class was chiming in to begin the stories. We shared the laughter brought about by the hilarious (and dumb) tales in the book, and though some of the students had read it before, all seemed to really get a kick out of being read to.

So, Teri, thank you for inviting me. Reading has been a life-long passion of mine, and if I helped even one of the students see how much fun reading can be, then it was time well spent. I would be pleased to do it again next year.

DAVID MARLOWE is editor and publisher of L’Observateur. He may be reached at (985) 652-9545.