Welcome to a new series for the Learning Leopard Library blog – Student Spotlight. Check out Student Spotlight posts to learn more about some of the students that make the Johnson Elementary School Library so awesome!

Today’s spotlight is on Raffi and Ryleigh, two Johnson first graders that spent Tuesday afternoon at the Jefferson Madison Regional Library with me for an exclusive VIP (maybe it should stand for Very Important Pipsqueak?) storytime. Raffi won the storytime as a prize from the PTO Bingo and Silent Auction Night. Raffi’s family donated to the Johnson PTO and as a prize, Raffi got to choose a friend to share a fun afternoon with me, some snacks, and some great stories!

First, we had to have a snack. After a long school day, you’ve got to replenish if you’re going to have enough energy for stories!

Next, we had to choose the books that we wanted to share. These two readers took this very seriously – we pulled three books off of the shelf at a time, and each one wanted one fiction, one nonfiction, and one chapter book. Between Magic Tree House, silly picture books, and nonfiction books about international cultures, we had quite a selection!

Next, we had to find a cozy place to share what we found. There was a great sunshiney spot on the steps in the back of the chlidren’s section, so we sat there. Raffi and Ryleigh read their books independently, shared them with me, and we even had some read-alouds. The silly book in Ryleigh’s hand in that last shot, called Minnie’s Diner, was a big hit – and gave us a chance to practice our math facts!

Before long, it was time to choose three more stories and head back to our favorite spot.

All too soon, it was time to go. But before we left, we had to share one last story with Raffi’s younger siblings. The last story was one of my favorites – a hilarious read-aloud called IT’S A TIGER! Warning, do not read this book unless you are willing to get silly!

Raffi and Ryleigh were way too busy reading to answer any interview questions, but I had a great time getting to know them better and sharing all of their favorite stories. Thank you for spending your afternoon with me, Raffi and Ryleigh! And thank you for helping to support the Johnson Elementary School PTO.

Interested in winning a VIP Story Time of your own? There will be one up for grabs in a few weeks in the Spring Book Fair Raffle! Find out more about our Book Fair Raffle, and the Book Fair Scholarship Fund that it supports, here. See an example of a past raffle basket here. And keep your eyes on the blog for more Spring Book Fair information, coming soon!