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| For several years, members of St. John's Lodge No. 9 have found ways to make a difference in the lives of young people. Annual scholarships have been issued to students of the Seattle Youth Symphony and the Cornish | | College of the Arts. Scholastic awards are given each year to high school students in the Seattle area to attend the college of their choice. The Seattle Pacific College of Nursing has students attending who might not otherwise be able to do so without the financial support of the Lodge. | |  |
For the past seven years, elementary students have also enjoyed the benefits extended by the members of St. John's. They are improving their reading skills in large part because the Lodge has been 100% of the support for the "accelerated reader" program at one school and has given a major shot in the arm at another. St. John's has worked with John Rogers Elementary school in northeast Seattle since 1998 to provide books for the accelerated reader program. At John Rogers, significant improvement in the Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL) test scores for math and reading are being attributed in part to the accelerated reader program.
What on earth is an accelerated reader book? The elementary school kids know. "You check out a book from your school library or your teacher and you go home and read it. Then you go to a school computer, insert the software and the computer asks you questions about the book. It determines how well you read the book, what you remember, and scores you on your answers." The kids get points for each book and a real sense of accomplishment. They love getting on the computer. And, along with their parents and teachers, they know the grade level of their reading comprehension.
The students and their parents know where this support is coming from.
On April 2nd, at a school assembly, members of the Lodge presented their latest gift to principal, R. Hawkins Cramer and librarian Collette Christenson. Then the 3rd grade classes gave us a surprise: a huge poster expressing "Thank You, St. John's," with artistic renditions of the many books read by each student. As this was an awards ceremony assembly, 600 kids were seated on the floor while 80 or so parents watched from the back. What a way to impact a community!
Photo caption: Masons present a check to the students at Cedar Way Elementary in Mountlake Terrace, part of the Edmonds School District. This marks the third year the school has been able to add books to its library along with the accompanying software quizzes. (photo by Darrel Womack)
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