Through the Gift of Words Project, Rotarians across the nation help
promote literacy in their local communities. In Clark County, the project
is sponsored by IQ Credit
Union, US Bank, Columbia Vista Corporation and local Rotary Clubs.
Upon receiving their dictionaries, students quickly discover that the book
given to them is much more than just a dictionary, it also includes over
150 pages of supplemental information. Key features include the
Constitution of the U.S., the Declaration of Independence, brief
biographies of all U. S. presidents, world maps, and information about
all 50 states, countries of the world, and the planets in our solar
system. It ends with the longest word in the English language.
The Gift of Words Project targets third graders specifically because it
has been identified as a key year for language development and vocabulary
improvement. Having a dictionary of their own allows students to have a
resource right at their fingertips, one which can be easily stored in a
backpack or desk and doesn¹t require internet access. Owing to the
popularity of this tradition, many of the third graders¹ older siblings
still have their dictionaries and remember the day when they were
presented.
This year the project included WHS Interact students, who were
enthusiastic about being involved. Interact is Rotary International¹s
service club for young people ages 12 to 18. Interact Club members lent a
hand in readying the books for distribution by affixing bookplates in the
front cover and inserting bookmarks into the dictionaries.
