By Kiara Cain
On October 31st and November 1st, the Shreve Library hosted their annual Book Fair. This event allows participants to create posters, videos presentations, and more about any book of their choosing.
Book fair is a way to promote and share information about the books students are currently reading. It is an opportunity to bring awareness to certain issues and allow students to talk about their favorite books.
The event is a multi-step process that requires participants to be very involved.
Participants must select their book, then create a unique poster board or visual to represent what they have chosen.
On the 31st of October, participants set up their projects in the library so visiting students could vote for the ones they liked best. The person with the most votes was chosen for the Student Choice Award.
On November 1st, judges walked around and listened to the participants’ presentations about their books, while scoring them based on criteria outlined by our librarians, Ms. Barclay and Ms. Long. In the end, the judges then tallied the scores and with the highest total receiving the Best in Show award.
The winner of this year’s Student Choice award was Paisley Actlis.
“Participating in the book fair was a fun event and allowed me to share important knowledge with others,” Actlis said. “I was very surprised and blessed to be able to win.”
Book Fair creates a friendly environment that allows students to have the freedom to express how they feel about the books they are reading. They are given the opportunity to share them with the judges who may have never read that particular book.
This year’s Best in Show award was Maria Singleton and she received a twenty-five dollar credit to the Scholastic Book Fair.
Both winners received a basket of next year’s Louisiana Teen Reader’s Choice books.
“I enjoyed the book fair, although it was a nerve-racking first experience, I quickly got used to interacting with the judges,” participant Maddison Reynolds said. “I would do it again and would tell anyone thinking about participating to not be afraid.”
Stepping out of your comfort zone can be hard but book fair serves as a great way to do so. Teachers, previous staff members, and even members of the school board come out to help judge the event.
The judges are nice and do not put much pressure on participants as they are also there to gain knowledge on new topics. They listen well as projects are presented and take their time scoring and deciding the best winners.
“I did Book Fair for two years and it was overall really fun,” Book Club president Clifton Walker states. “Although I did not win anything, I highly recommend It to those who are interested. You not only meet people who have similar interests but also people who like to read.”
Book Fair has a great impact on those who present. Despite not participating in this year’s event, Walker still shares his fondness toward the occasion. Book Fair creates memories that can be carried throughout high school and on to college.
By participating in these sorts of events it also teaches students to be aware of the importance of issues going on around them as they can have a big impact on not just our campus but the world as a whole.