By: centraljersey.com
The temperature was a bitter 27 degrees Friday night but that didn’t matter to the students and parents who came out to the annual Reading Slumber Party at Weston School. The event helps promote reading while spending quality family time together.
Don Frank began the event 18 years ago when he first became the elementary school’s principal.
"It is one of the things that is open to all family members," he said. "We have had people as young as a 4-day-old baby to former students who are from the middle school or the high school who come back, as well as their parents."
This was a time for families to sit and relax for an hour while reading together.
"To show how times have changed, when we started, parents used to comment on how nice it was to be able to get away from their house and not answer the phone for an hour. Now with cell phones, you don’t get away from anything," he laughed.
Reading is very important and Mr. Frank believes that having this small event "just reinforces our school goal of having children read. Reading is probably the most important skill that they can develop in the life. If you can read, you can do anything you want."
He set three goals as principal, one of which was to improve the reading skills in school, so he started the event.
"It started from that and we have continued very year," he said. "We squeeze it in January because it is a good time. People aren’t involved with the outdoor fall sports or spring sports. We kind of get it in."
Each year for the Reading Slumber Party there is some sort of weather condition. This year was cold but in past years, Mr. Frank said there has been freshly fallen snow, rain and sleet.
Besides the students, their parents and families, some of the Weston staff also joins in the fun.
"We are fortunate that we have a new librarian-media specialist this year, Sandy Romano," said Mr. Frank.
"It is wonderful to have an event where the kids can come in with their books and their parents to promote reading. It is a great night to have the slumber party. The kids have been really excited about it this week," said Ms. Romano, who attended the event.
Students come in their pajamas with blankets, pillows, sleeping bags and a selection of books. They pick a spot in the hallways, most nearby their classrooms, and relax.
Nathaniel Bezick and his Nanny Barbara brought books picked out by Nathaniel’s sister Ashlee, including "Dragon Egg," "Henry and Mudge" and "Fancy Nancy." Nathaniel said he would have rather read the Sponge Bob books but was OK with these.
Korinna Martine brought a "Spot What" book and sat with her friend Shadai Hendricks who was reading "That’s Disgusting."
Jackie Zuza has been to five of the Reading Slumber Party events. "I really love it because you get to be with friends that you really don’t see often. It is fun to read and fun to read with your friends," she said.
Her friends Angelina Sanchez and Camryn Toth all sat together to read their books. Emily Tarnovetchi and her mom, Donna, sat in the hallway as they read their books.
Ms. Tarnovetchi has been to many of the slumber parties as Emily is the youngest of her three children.
"We always look forward to it. It’s a great experience and I think it really gets us connected with the kids. We always pick the books that we know we could never read. I think it is a great experience and I wish that it will continue for years to come," she said.
After all the reading time was over, everyone enjoyed snacks provided by the Weston PTA to end the evening.

