Students at Oak Harbor Intermediate School will all receive a copy of the same book to read as part of a literacy and community-building initiative funded by the school’s Parent Teacher Association.

The “One School, One Book” program is an iteration of Seattle Public Library’s “One City, One Book,” founded in 1998. Oak Harbor Intermediate leaders decided to take up the program to help students reconnect after two years in which remote learning kept kids apart and many activities that would typically create a sense of unity within the school were forgone.

“It’s an exciting time for them to be able to pull together around something pertinent to them and something that will be a good experience,” said Oak Harbor Intermediate librarian Alice Mikos.

Program leaders chose the New York Times bestseller “Pax” by Sara Pennypacker for the school to read together. The book follows a boy who befriends a young fox, but has to leave it behind when he moves in with his grandfather after his single father’s deployment. Fearful that the fox, named Pax, might not survive in the woods, the boy sets off on a journey to locate his furry friend.

Mikos explained that kids will have the chance to read the book during the regular independent reading period on Wednesdays, and that teachers may also choose to read some of the book aloud in their classrooms. The book will be integrated into the curriculum, as teachers have been provided with “Pax”-related questions and activities to help students engage with the story and one another.

To purchase enough books so that each child could have his or her own — more than 800 books in total — cost around $4,000. PTA President Candie Rogers said when PTA members heard about the program, they were more than happy to foot the bill.

Because field trips and other activities for which the PTA would typically chip in haven’t been happening during the pandemic, the organization had funds to spare on the books. Rogers said she and other PTA members thought “One School, One Book” was the perfect way to bring students together during a time when other team-building options are limited by health and safety concerns.

“We wanted to give back, and they told us about this program, and we had the funds,” she said. “It just seemed like the perfect fit.”

The cost of the books was also an investment in future students, Rogers said, as incoming Oak Harbor Intermediate classes will be able to read these books together for years to come.