The younger students stared intently at the red and white striped hats. “Hey!” said one first grader, “She looks like Dr. Seuss!”

This year, students from Jefferson’s Book Buddies club celebrated Read Across America Day by reading Dr. Seuss and other books at Weyanoke Elementary School while wearing Dr. Seuss hats.

Headed by the National Education Association (NEA), Read Across America Day was founded in 1997 to get kids excited about reading. It was held in conjunction with Dr. Seuss’ birthday, March 2, as a way for kids to connect to the day and be enthusiastic about it.

On most Friday’s, Book Buddies’ members work on reading skills with individual students of varying ages, but yesterday, each member read to an entire classroom.

“Unfortunately, many students at Weyanoke do not pick up books until they enter the classroom and therefore miss the stage of development during which children develop a love of reading,” senior Paul Naanou said. “Read Across America is a great opportunity to get them interested in reading.”