A local school district is working to stress the importance of reading.  They say reading just 20 minutes a day helps to improve comprehension and language skills.

Folks at Greater Johnstown School District said Thursday that too often they hear about the negatives going on around Johnstown.

Their first ever Reading Carnival was another way to show all of the good that is happening in the area.

Earlier Thursday volunteers were busy setting up for the event.  Around 1,000 people were expected to be at Trojan Stadium.

There were relay races, games, an obstacle course, and a dunking booth for students to try to dunk some of their teachers or administrators.

Organizers wanted to stress that this event wouldn’t be possible without all of the community support.

All of the food, prizes, and most importantly books were free for the kids.

The effort will hopefully encourage more than just summer reading.  We’re told this initiative was also started to get families more involved.

“We’ve had a number of events this year to bring the parents and the guardians into the school with their kids and get to know the faculty and staff a little better,” said East Side Elementary teacher Mandy Kurtz.  “We just like to try to get the families involved.”

They hope to continue the event next year.