SCIL

Fear factors

SCIL storybooks soothe fears of young children; possible budget cuts of SCIL instill real fear for students, teachers and parents

By RICHARD A. ROSS

LAKE HUNTINGTON, NY — We all know what it feels like to be in the grips of fear, one of the most powerful of human emotions. As adults, our fears often surround what we consider to be “real” threats such as declining health, war, insecurity, poverty, loneliness, loss or failure, just to name a few.

But for young children, whose fears are as real to them as those felt by adults, things such as the first day of school, going to the dentist, not knowing what lurks in the dark or taking a bath can be frightful and intimidating.

Children need need to hear that while it’s natural to be afraid, they can overcome their fears. Calm and reassuring voices are helpful. To that end, many children’s books have been written to help youngsters identify and overcome their greatest fears.

On February 26, Sullivan County Interacademic League (SCIL) teams comprised of freshmen and sophomores from Monticello, Liberty, Eldred, Sullivan West, Tri-Valley, Livingston Manor, Roscoe and Fallsburg convened to create children’s storybooks that would have as their themes particular childhood fears.

The day’s challenge was to write and illustrate books that would identify a young character’s unique source of concern and offer experiences that would allay those worries. The stories, which could ostensibly be read aloud to an audience of kindergartners, needed to have a resolution showing how the young protagonists were able to overcome the things that had made them most afraid.

Prior to imparting the details of the task at hand to the incoming students, SCIL advisers gathered to address some real fears of their own, namely that the program, which has been a wellspring for creativity since 1991, is purportedly in danger of being targeted by budget cuts that could eliminate it or alter it into an after-school activity or club.

Such changes would eliminate the participation of many students who already have after-school commitments such as work, sports, music lessons or responsibilities at home.

Ask kids who have been SCIL participants and the vast majority will tell you even years after they graduated that those endeavors were some of their most valuable learning experiences.

The SCIL teams chose their theme and began a division of labor as some worked on the front cover title, imaginary author and an illustration related to the book’s theme. Others authored the front and back inside flaps with story summaries, drawings of the “author” and a short biography. The back cover matter required two book reviews by famous people.

The students convened in the school library to work on computers, to brainstorm and to create the large book jackets whose various parts would be assessed for their content, neatness, effort, grammar and spelling.

Each book was evaluated for a catchy beginning, its focus on the topic, characters portrayed in text, its solution to the character’s problem, creative details, use of action verbs, pictures, spelling and punctuation.

Later, members from each team read the story in front of the full assemblage of SCIL students and advisers. Judges used a rubric to assess scores based on the reader’s knowledge of the story, voice, acting/dialogue that would make the characters more believable. Presentations had to adhere to a predetermined time limit.

The books created by the teams were uniformly charming and resourceful, but each was unique in its own right. Liberty’s “What If?,” the day’s winner, focused on the fears of moving to a new place, in this case the planet Neptune. “Librarian” Sabrina Mastrogiovanni’s reading to her attentive listeners was entertaining and engaging.

Monticello’s “The Angels Are Bowling” addressed fears of the rain, while Eldred asked “What Lurks in the Water?” elucidating a child’s fear of the bath. Fallsburg pondered “Where’s Sparky?” in their book dealing with fears of going outside. Tri-Valley’s “Patches” voiced fears of a first day at school and the challenge of making new friends. Another Monticello team wrote “The Adventures of Tommy the Turtle,” wherein the protagonist takes on the challenge of learning to ride a bike. Livingston Manor’s “Annabelle, It’s Time for Bed” explored imaginary monsters in the dark. Roscoe’s “Will Jack Come Back?” grappled with a fear of the dentist. Sullivan West’s story, “Sweet Dreams My Little Monster” evoked images of things that go bump in the night.

Liberty won the day with 200 points. Sullivan West was second with 190.7. Tri-Valley took third (187.7). Monticello was fourth on the day (184.5) and Livingston Manor was fifth (176.5).

After four competitions (two to go), Monticello is in first (743), just ahead of Sullivan West (742) and third place Liberty (738). Tri-Valley holds fourth place (707) with Roscoe in fifth (673).

Stay tuned for more on the remaining SCIL endeavors and on the decisions about the program’s future.

Visit riverreportersports.com for an album of photos from the event.