The Belleville Elementary School hosted their 3rd annual Big Read on April 27, 2017, as part of Money Smart Week, a national initiative between the American Library Association and the Federal Reserve Bank.

The district was honored to have State Secretary of Financial Institutions, Jay Risch, and Department of Financial Institutions Director, David Mancl, visit with students! These professionals helped show students the importance of being "Money Smart." They also went into classrooms, spoke with students and participated in hands-on activities.

Belleville District Administrator, Pam Yoder, also read a book to students in a school-wide assembly about financial literacy. Each student even went home with a copy of the Mercer Mayer book, Just Saving My Money. In addition, UB&T presented a baseball shaped piggy bank to all students and gave them a quarter to help kick-start their savings. The excitement was apparent on student's faces when they received their banks and heard the jingle of the quarter in their new banks.

The event didn't stop there! With the guidance of business education teacher, Mr. Erik Farrar, high school students also visited each elementary school classroom and taught a financial literacy lesson. The older students not only prepared lessons, but also taught the younger students about coins, dollars, the value of money and how to start saving. They used technology to engage the younger students in hands-on activities and even got down on the floor and colored with them.

From this engaging event, Belleville students learned the importance of being "Money Smart."