MANILA, Philippines?Time does fly when you?re enjoying timeless tales.

The award-winning Inquirer Read-Along held its 100th session on Saturday, marking more than two years of promoting the love of reading among the young through colorful, interactive storytelling.

Show biz idol and guest reader Richard Gomez opened the program which gathered around 40 schoolchildren at the multipurpose hall of the Philippine Daily Inquirer?s main office in Makati City.

?Goma? was also joined by a group of storytellers composed of students and teachers from Sophia School in Meycauayan, Bulacan.

The actor-TV host read out ?Sina Linggit Laban Kay Barakuda,? which told of how a school of tiny fish banded together to overcome a ?huge problem.?

The underwater adventure was retold for Filipino readers by Tom Agulto and Rene O. Villanueva and published by the Philippine Children?s Television Foundation and Cacho Publishing House.

Sophia students Jackielyn Ruiz, Dominique Sarza, Jasper Regoso, Joseph Urian and Alyssa Bularan and teacher Dhang Bernabe starred in a skit to narrate ?The Boy with an Orange Robe,? a story about Chamlong Srimuang, a Thai activist and politician.

Rizal?s fable

Chamlong is the 1992 Ramon Magsaysay awardee for government service. His story appears in the children?s book series ?Great Men and Women of Asia? published by the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation.

To cap the session, Sophia School principal Ann Abacan led a musical rendition of ?Si Pagong at si Matsing? (The Turtle and the Monkey), a fable originally penned by the country?s national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal.

The performance was based on a version by National Artist Virgilio Almario and published by Adarna House. Teachers Nerry Denilla and Bernabe acted out the animal characters.

As part of its educational tour, the Sophia School troupe will also perform the stories before students of Samroiyod Wittayakhom School in Prachuap Khiri Khan, Thailand, in the first week of November.

For added fun and to keep the children in rapt attention, Gomez played multiple characters and mimicked different voices.

?I enjoyed reading for the kids,? he later said in an interview. ?I have had a bit of experience in that department because I used to read to my daughter Juliana and have often been invited as a storyteller to some schools.?

?The children today were very receptive,? Gomez noted. ?They were really focused and they seemed to enjoy the story.?

?I find programs like the Inquirer Read-Along very helpful. Reading is like food for the brain. It is a very interesting way of teaching and it would be nice if more children would have access to reading (materials).?

Reading tips

Saturday?s audience was composed of pupils from four different schools, namely Waynesville Learning Center in Cavite; and Think & Try School, Colegio de San Agustin, and Morrisonridge Academy in Makati.

First-time participant Rowena Lozada went to the 100th session together with her children?Diego Tristan, 4, and Isabella, 6.

?The readers were very entertaining and the stories were really suitable for the kids,? Lozada said. ?In fact, I have picked up some tips on how to read stories to my kids.?

The Lozada children said they both enjoyed Rizal?s fable the most. ?Matsing was so funny,? Isabella said as little brother Diego shyly nodded in agreement.

The Oct. 24 session was held in cooperation with TriDharma Corp. and GMA Network.

29 months of joy

The children received gifts and prizes courtesy of Vibal Publishing and ?Family Feud,? a game show hosted by Gomez on GMA.

Since May 2007, in a span of 29 months, the Inquirer Read-Along had brought the joys of reading and storytelling to children in Metro Manila, Baguio City, Bulacan, Laguna, the Bicol region, Bataan, Negros Occidental, Davao, Cotabato and Maguindanao.

On Thursday, the extension program Read-Along 2?Across the Nation received a Merit Award from the Philippine Quill, a prestigious award-giving body for business communicators. The body also recognized the Inquirer Read-Along with an Excellence Award last year.

The next session is scheduled for Nov. 14. Interested participants may call Ellen Caparros at 897-8808 loc 329. Slots are available on a first-come, first-served basis. With a report from Schatzi Quodala, Inquirer Research