SM Santa Rosa, in partnership with SM Cares, recently celebrated National Children’s Book Reading Day with the special participation of Rep. Arlene Arcillas of the 1st District of Laguna.
Held annually in all SM malls nationwide, the NCBRD is a project of SM Cares whose aim is to encourage and promote reading by younger children. The project is supported by the Department of Education, National Bookstore, Anvil Publishing and SM Foundation.
Edessa Sibug, SM Santa Rosa’s assistant mall manager, delivered the welcome message.
“SM believes that learning is not restricted inside the four corners of a classroom, as we care for each and every child that enters our mall by promoting their rights, prioritizing their safety and enhancing their learning experience in a child-friendly environment,” Sibug said.
Arcillas was the guest of honor at the book reading, where she read Robert Magnuson’s “Duck and Croc Meet Collector Alligator” to Grades 2 and 4 students of Central II Elementary School Santa Rosa and La Consolacion College-Biñan, respectively.
Part of the program was a theater presentation by La Consolacion College, which performed an excerpt from the award winning musical “Matilda.”
National Bookstore and Anvil Publishing gave away books and notebooks to the students while La Consolacion College donated pre-loved books to Central II Elementary School. For its part, SM donated 1,000 pieces of pencils to Central II Elementary School.
National Children’s Book Reading Day is celebrated in 68 participating malls in the country, as well as seven SM malls in China.