Town's Third-Graders Receive Dictionaries

It wasn't Halloween candy that had students scrambling in Susan Souza's class at Juliet W. Long School last Friday. Instead of Kit Kats and Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, these kids were excited about receiving a new reference tool that hopefully will lead to a greater command of the English language.

The Ledyard Rotary had arrived at the school with its annual donation of dictionaries – one for each third grader in the school system.

Board of Education Business Manager Bill Merrill helped establish the free dictionary program in Ledyard five years ago. He and fellow Rotarian Karen Geotchius loaded the books onto a red wagon, which they wheeled through the Juliet Long hallway. Also there to help out was Barbara Jones, wife of 18-year Rotarian Terry Jones, and schools Superintendent Michael Graner.

The red wagon made its first stop at Souza's classroom, where the third-graders were gathered on the carpeted floor. Before anyone got their dictionaries, however, Merrill had some questions for the kids.

Did anyone know why the class was getting dictionaries today?

Hand's shot up. Everyone seemed to know it was because it was because lexicographer Noah Webster was born in October.

And where was Webster born?

"Connecticut!" the students shouted, "in West Hartford!"

The students also learned that Webster had spent 25 years writing his dictionary – without the aid of a computer or a typewriter.

Merrill had bought the dictionaries from a program that supplies them in bulk at a nominal cost. Each dictionary came with other handy resources, such as a copy of the U.S. Constitution, the periodic table and biographies for each U.S. president.

Souza looked on as her students received their dictionaries – all with gracious "thank-you's." Afterward, students had the choice of either taking the books with them to help with homework, or leaving them in their classroom cubbies for use at school.

Either way, she expects that the students will get a lot of mileage out of their new gifts. "Years later, I've heard students tell me that they're still using the dictionaries," she said.