Community Corner

Former NY Knick Stresses the Importance of Reading to Kids

John Starks: 'It is hard to get anywhere in society today without the basic, fundamental knowledge that comes from reading.'

Hundreds of children at the Boys and Girls Club of Wayne received a lesson about the importance of reading from former New York Knick John Starks and state Assemblyman Scott Rumana (D-40) Tuesday morning.

The event kicked off the Knicks Read to Achieve Summer Reading Program. The program is a partnership between the Knicks and Cablevision's Power to Learn education initiative. It is designed to encourage children to read during the summer.

"Some studies suggest that students may digress half a grade level in their reading ability between academic years if they don't keep reading," said Trent Anderson, vice president of education for Cablevision. "Having the kids hear from a former NBA player who tells them how important reading is can motivate them to keep reading."

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Starks said his mother and grandmother stressed the importance of reading to him as a child. He said he would not have been able to play in the NBA if he didn't learn to enjoy reading at a young age.

Hundreds of children attended the event. A few sat next to Starks and Rumana as they read a page or two from the book to the group.

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"You learn so much through reading," Starks said. "It is hard to get anywhere in society today without the basic, fundamental knowledge that comes from reading and reading about what is going on in the world."


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