Amelia Bedelia, Ms. Frizzle, Fancy Nancy, Junie B. Jones, Charlie Brown, Pinkalicious, Alice in Wonderland, Amber Brown and Minnie Mouse made some special appearances on Saturday, April 12.
Florida Southern Students, belonging to the Epsilon Gamma chapter of Kappa Delta Pi (KDPi), and a few other volunteers, dressed up as favorite storybook characters to meet and greet with walkers during the 2014 Show Your Character Walk for Dyslexia.
Dyslexia is a neurological learning disability specific to reading. People with dyslexia often have difficulties with decoding words, word recognition and spelling.
The Robert’s Academy, a part of Florida Southern, exclusively teaches students with dyslexia in grades two through six. With proper instruction, students with dyslexia are able read and write like those students without the disability, which is one of the goals of the Robert’s Academy.
The walk started and ended at the Robert’s Academy and it was a mile long around campus. There were eight character spots along the walk, at which parents and kids alike could meet the story book characters.
“Well, we really wanted to do this walk to give back to the Roberts Academy since we, as education majors, use Roberts Academy as a tool to train us and prepare us as future teachers,” Amy Lew, FSC sophomore KDPi Secretary, said. “We also really wanted to promote awareness in the community to show the impact the diagnosis [of dyslexia] has on students and teachers.”
At the end of the walk there were water bottles, Goldfish Crackers, apples, PDQ cookies, fruit snacks and granola bars waiting for everyone. Every child who completed the walk received a medal and a balloon.
KDPi wanted to thank the eight plus people who participated in the walk, the volunteers and the donors, in no particular order: Mrs. Snapp, Rodessa Oil and Land, the FSC Admissions Department, Pepperidge Farm, Feeding Grounds Outreach and PDQ.
“I thought it was a great way to raise awareness for dyslexia. The kids all had a lot of fun too. I loved volunteering for such a great cause,” Rebecca Schild, FSC sophomore and event volunteer, said.
To help support the cause, KDPi will be selling red t-shirts from the walk for $10. The shirts say: “Show Your Character: Walk For Dyslexia April 2014.” The shirts can be purchased at the front desk in the Robert’s Academy or you can talk to a KDPi member for more information.