County children read with TVO’s Gisèle

TVOKids’ host Gisèle, star of Gisèle’s Big Backyard, read to  County early learners and their families Saturday at the Picton library.

Encouraging families to foster a love of reading in kids aged 2 to 5, the annual Read with Gisèle tour visited Picton as one of many stops at libraries across the province this summer.

Gathering around Gisèle’s toadstool, kids share in the magic of reading as Gisèle brings Philippe Béha’s I’ve Lost My Cat to life. In the story, a young boy loses his cat – a round, yellow, black and white cat named Greyling. The boy’s friends all try to find Greyling and they bring the young boy all sorts of animals that somewhat match the description of his cat. They bring him a leopard, a pig and an elephant… but none of them are Greyling.

The first 100 children in attendance received a complimentary copy of I’ve Lost My Cat, a bookmark, and TVOKids bag. After the reading, kids met Gisèle in an autograph session.

“I’m thrilled to be on the third Read with Gisèle tour, making stops in libraries across Ontario,” says Gisèle. “Reading with children is a wonderful way to build early literacy skills, and I hope this event encourages kids and their families to take the time to read together every day.”

The love of reading continues on-air and online with new Gisèle’s Big Backyard Book Club segments airing this fall, which include Gisèle’s friends Sir Reads-A-Lot and Lady Writes Well in segments that nurture children’s literacy skills.