Southfield , St Elizabeth — Read Across Jamaica Day, celebrated last month, took an interesting twist at Mayfield All Age at Southfield, southern St Elizabeth, when principal of St Elizabeth Technical High School (STETHS) Keith Wellington and his seven-year-old son Maleik turned up to participate.

The senior Wellington, a past student of Mayfield, who also spent time there as a pre-trained teacher while still a teenager, read to grade six students and used a powerpoint presentation to illustrate the power of reading, while Maleik read to grade two students.“It went very well,” said principal of Mayfield All Age, George Lewis. “The students were truly engaged with Mr Wellington and found his approach very enriching. They became even more engaged when, in the process of conversation, they found out that in some instances he knew their parents and went to school with them,” he said.Lewis said that as part of the effort to spark interest, Mayfield All Age also altered the class-teaching routine on Read Across Jamaica Day with teachers switching classes to read to students.Mayfield All Age, considered among the leading primary schools in St Elizabeth, accommodates 324 children.