Students attend Camp Read S'More

VERNON — Approximately 130 students and families attended Camp Read S'More Family Literacy Night, May 11, sponsored by the Sussex County Council for Young Children.
The entire Walnut Ridge Primary School gym was full of families sitting in front of colorful tents, eating pizza around the “camp fire,” laughing, and conversing.
Camp Read S'More is the multi-faceted “camping” program which promotes reading and gives parents support with literacy at home.
Families wrote and told camping stories, sang songs, completed word finds, colored tent pictures, had a scavenger hunt, ate healthy trail mix, and little boys ran everywhere giggling.
During the scavenger hunt, one father said to his son, “We have to find a friend.” The son quickly pointed to a new friend he had just made.
Mothers helped daughters glue pop-sickle sticks on construction paper to make their tent crafts.
Children received pretend S'Mores with little baggies of: graham crackers, chocolate, and marshmallows.
At the end of the evening, everyone received a resource bag, and each child received a flashlight to read with at night.
Program Coordinator of the Sussex County Council of N.J. for Young Children, Haley McCracken, said their literacy program is run through Project Self-Sufficiency (PSS,) which serves Sussex County. Funding comes through the State Department of Children and Families.
Principal Rosemary Gebhardt said, Project Self-Sufficiency frequently comes to the school to provide services, help, and support to parents and families.
McCracken said, it was their fourth camping literacy program. They have run programs ranging from ten to over 130 people. She added, “It's the biggest one we've had.”
They work with prenatal to eight year-old children.
Her favorite part of the evening, McCracken said, is watching the families interact together, where the parents get down on the floor to read together with their kids.
She also said she appreciated the collaboration between Walnut Ridge and the community agency. Gebhardt, McCracken said, has been so wonderful, supportive, and open to letting them work in the school.
McCracken said the Mission of Project Self-Sufficiency is to help families gain economic self-sufficiency and financial stability. She explained they serve families, single parents, and single individuals.
She continued, the goal of the County Council for Young Children is to aid in reducing at risk behaviors. They focus on young children, by providing parents tips and tools to make sure their children are as successful as possible.
Also, McCracken added, the county council gives parents a voice in the community, where parents can talk about needs, and PSS can help fill gaps and connect them to resources. For more information, The Department of Children and Families website is: projectsussexkids.org.