Coffee shop serves up literacy for youngsters

A local coffee shop welcomed some knee-high visitors last week to be part of the largest shared reading experience in the nation.

First and second graders from Henry Miller Elementary School's STAR Program joined Starbucks for Read for the Record, an event in which schools, groups, libraries and Starbucks sites throughout the country read the same book to young children to support early reading habits.

"These kids love to be read to," STAR site director Belinda Tartt said. "On nice days we lay on the grass and read, they love it."

Sitting on quilts instead of grass this time, childrens' eyes gazed up and their jaws dropped as they followed Starbucks manager Kelly Shattuck's, every word from "The Little Engine That Could."

"We began stocking these (books) last month and can't keep them on the shelves," Shattuck said. "I had to go to the library and get this copy to read."

Read for the Record is a literacy campaign co-sponsored by Jumpstart and Starbucks.

All proceeds from the sale of The Little Engine That Could at Starbucks sites are donated to Jumpstart, a national, non-profit early education organization that mainly targets low-income preschoolers.

"Starbucks is very big on literacy. This is something the corporation strongly believes in," Shattuck said.

In addition to the classic favorite of the little steam engine, Shattuck also read a couple of her favorites that she read to her children and grandchildren like "The Day Jimmy's Boa Ate the Wash" and "Did I Ever Tell You How Lucky You Are?" by Dr. Seuss which were a big hit with STAR pupils.

After the storytelling ended, Tyler Parra, 5, and his friends sat among the high school students, just off from classes, excitedly talking about how they wished the book had turned out or what they would have done in Jimmy's place if their pets had eaten the wash.

"I would have called the police," Parra said.