Frank J. Carasiti Elementary School celebrated a unique day of learning with National Schwa Day on April 7. K-5 Instructional Coach Jennifer Meschi spearheaded the unique, first-time celebration to shine a spotlight on the fascinating and often-overlooked schwa sound, a relaxed, unstressed vowel noise that is heard in English words that have more than one syllable. The educational event tied perfectly with the school’s focus on the HMH curriculum. 

Students and teachers were encouraged to wear pajamas or comfortable clothing to be relaxed like the schwa sound. Teachers wore schwa T-shirts and headed up schwa-themed activities, including creating crowns, reading, songs, videos, sorting and craft activities, to make the day both educational and fun. 

Mrs. Meschi read to numerous classes “The Not-So-Lazy Schwa” by Yvette Manns - a lively, interactive way to explore the schwa sound and “Schwa in 1st Grade” by Rachel Sorsel, an engaging story to support younger students challenged with grasping phonics concepts.
She even baked schwa butter cookies for the occasion and set a table in her room filled with the cookies, flavored sparkling waters, candy, mini moon pies and breakfast bars – all in lemon and banana flavors (Mrs. Meschi’s favorite schwa words) for the staff to stop by and enjoy. She also encouraged teacher participation by placing games and challenges in their mailboxes and hiding 30 schwa stickers throughout the building for teachers to find and redeem for prizes including schwa plushies, schwa stickers, schwa journals and schwa zipper pouches. 

“You might ask, why celebrate something as simple as a vowel sound?” Mrs. Meschi said.  “Mastering the schwa is essential for improving pronunciation, breaking down multi-syllabic words and boosting overall fluency in both reading and speaking. Plus, it's just plain fun to explore the quirks of our language.”