Paula Woodruff, fifth-grade teacher at Great Oaks, entered into Michigan Construction’s “Truck Load of Books” contest with the hopes of getting new books for her classroom at Great Oaks Charter Academy. Michigan Construction delivered 45 Tonka-size truckloads of books to teachers and students across the state, and Paula Woodruff’s class was one of them!
“The students had no clue we won until the prize was being delivered,” said Paula Woodruff. “They were certainly surprised and excited.”
Students eagerly listened as one of Iafrate Construction’s civil engineers gave a presentation. He read them a story and gave students the opportunity to ask questions. In addition, he gave away two hard hats as prizes, and the winners gleefully wore them for the rest of the day.
Winners received 14 books about construction, building, architecture, and engineering that best fit their classroom’s reading level. Michigan Construction's goal was to get more construction-related books into Michigan classrooms and in front of young readers.
“Having books on a variety of topics is important. For many students, books are their way of accessing worlds/ideas that would otherwise go unknown to them,” said Woodruff. “It was fun to watch them enjoy reading!”