Eye-Opening Washington
Student Wishes
Essays written by Washington Primary School fourth graders brought tears to the eyes of some readers and smiles to the faces of others. They were that powerful. The youngsters wrote about their "wishes" during a REACH project with library media specialist Georganne White.
REACH (Research and Enrichment Activities for the Children in Huntington) was developed by SEARCH Chairperson Maryann Daly and the district's elementary school librarians. "REACH was designed to provide hands-on active learning for all children in the second and third grades district-wide and interested and task-committed students in the fourth grade," Mrs. Daly said.
After reading and discussing "The Fisherman and His Wife" from the Junior Great Books Series, the Washington students completed "amazing essays about their wishes," Ms. White said. The wishes are posted on a colorful bulletin board in the hallway outside the library.
"After reading the story and discussing the theme of 'greed,' they all wrote essays about what they would wish for if they caught an enchanted fish," Ms. White said. "They really surprised me with their very caring and global wishes."
Some of the wishes included:
• To end cancer;
• To bring back my dead cat;
• To stop fighting in a war;
• To have a million new books for our library;
• For my family not to have so many problems;
• To really end global warming;
• To have enough clean clothes to give to the poor people;
• To play football like Eli Manning;
• To stop all murders and robberies;
• To see my big sister more;
• To go back and visit my country;
• To have the batting strength of David Wright;
• To give the poor a magic refrigerator so they can have all the food they need;
• To play piano really well;
• To make my grandpa hear better;
• To have my Mom and Dad together.