BLOOMFIELD, NJ — Kids and books are perfect together, as seen at Carteret Elementary School’s annual Scholastic Book Fair, which took place last week. Assorted varieties of colorful paperbacks and hardcovers, including diaries, graphic books, chapter books, popular series, books about dogs, cats and dinosaurs, were displayed in the Media Room. For older students, there was a book on the Vietnam War, written in Spanish and in English, and a hardcover with photographs about the assasination of Martin Luther King Jr.
Media specialist Jean Barbetta handled questions and cash sales, but students also used “e-wallets,” credit cards especially for the book fair. Real credit cards were also honored and the fair was open late one night for the parents to browse.
There was also online shopping, but after making a purchase in the Media Room, children sprawled on the carpet to read and this seemed like the best way to do business. Twenty-five percent of the receipts were made available to Carteret by Scholastic to purchase books from its catalogue that will likely be placed on the Carteret shelves.
Leading up to the book fair, Barbetta read selected books to groups of children and these titles, she said, sold out once the fair got under way.