Reading Challenges

Implementing a FUN reading challenge in your school can be a great way to encourage students to read, and with the right motivational tools students can develop a desire and appreciation for reading. You empower individual interests and preferences when students are allowed to choose their own books. A reading challenge can include all formats – print, eBooks, audio books, and read-alongs.

• Meet with school leaders and PTSA members to decide on a theme, how you want to structure your challenge, and the start and end dates. Do you want to plan an assembly to kick off the challenge? Is there a budget to purchase prizes?

• When teachers actively participate, it brings a sense of unity to the project - get teachers excited!

• Establish a committee that includes the librarian, classroom teachers, the school Family Liaison, and parents. Have a teacher give updates at staff meetings so all teachers are aware of latest plans, etc.

• With or without prizes, determine how you can celebrate students that have completed the challenge.

• Notify parents via flyers or notices in your the school newsletter so they are aware of the reading challenge and can be supportive. Get the word out in all the languages that represent your school community (contact Multicultural Services Department for translations.) Inform parents that the Reading Challenge includes all reading formats (print, eBooks, audiobooks).

• Send out flyers to families regarding free eBooks through OverDrive that are available to DPS families. For information about flyers contact the Library Services Helpdesk 720.423.1842.

• Considering your school community, take into account the languages that are represented in your library collection and display diverse books. Let students know that OverDrive eBooks are available in Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, German, and French.

• Create posters to display throughout the school to get the school community excited about the challenge. Invite non-teaching staff to participate.

Reading challenges can be simple or more complex but the goal is to "spice up literature" and give students an incentive to open a book. The following 4 ideas will help you get started.

Reading Challenge Bingo is a full-page bingo sheet where students and staff follow the regular rules of bingo – choose titles from rows going vertical, horizontal, or diagonal. Each square indicates a genre or a theme, for example “Read Fantasy” or “Read About Dinosaurs”. In each square completed, participants can write in the book title or have a parent/teacher initial. Enthusiastic readers can fill in all the squares! You can have a corresponding theme or not as "reading bingo” can be your theme! The idea of Reading Challenge Bingo is to encourage students to read “outside of their comfort zone” and broaden their horizon by reading a variety of genres and themes.

Examples and templates - customize for your school community:

• Reading Challenge Bingo Instructions

• Elementary K-2

• Elementary 3rd-5th

• Middle School Bingo Card
  

• High School Bingo Card

• Basic Bingo Card

• Video - The Raptor Reading Challenge at Eaglecrest High School in Cherry Creek

It looks like monopoly! Create a large bookopoly bulletin board - every square indicates a different genre or theme. (It’s purely a visual - not a game.) See link below for examples of Bookopoly Squares - you can make your Bookopoly bulletin board as big or small as you want. In addition to genres, you can also create squares indicating specific titles and authors. To help students with book choices, in addition to displaying books by genre make bookmarks with genre headings and list titles that fit that genre (great project for high school students.) Having clear signage in the library aids students in their quest for finding the right books. Let students know that they can read OverDrive eBooks, audio books or read-alongs for any Bookopoly square.

Examples and templates - customize for your school community:

Bookopoly Instructions

Bookopoly Squares

Twenty-six letters in the alphabet - 26 books - you determine the start and end date and design your program (do you want to divide the books between fiction and nonfiction?) Allow students to choose their own books.

Examples and Templates

A-Z Instructions Plus Reading Log

Read a million words for the entire year or maybe less than that for a few months. How about 50,000 pages instead of a million words? Design a challenge that is achievable, realistic, and fun for your students. (This is a great opportunity to promote eBooks.) Plan a school-wide celebration to acknowledge the great job students have done in striving to meet the goal. You will probably need a committee to devise a means to keep track of reading tallies.

Include Books About Star Wars and Astronomy

• May the 4th Be With You Reading Challenge can start April 4th and end on May 4th which is the official Star Wars Day.

• You can choose to include celebrating National Astronomy Day.

• For ideas and suggestions, see the attached document:

May the 4th Be With You Reading Challenge

Celebrate National Astronomy Day

Include Books About Zombies and Disaster Preparedness

• You may want your celebration to coincide with Zombie Awareness Month in May or the Denver Zombie Crawl in October.

• For ideas and suggestions see the attached document:

Teen Zombie Survival Reading Challenge - Resources

• If your school or the school PTSA has the budget, you can have reading-related prizes/incentives available for students who meet reading challenges: books, stickers, or bookmarks.

• For students with high achievements (i.e. filled out the entire bingo card) their names can be entered into a drawing for new books. You can also read their names over the school P.A. system and award certificates.

• Students can share their favorite reading challenge book by giving a short booktalk over the P.A. system.

• If you have a successful reading challenge you can allow the students to decide on a fun challenge for the principal. Ideas for this would be to have the principal wear a silly costume, sing karaoke, walk around in his pajamas, slippers, and carry a stuffed bear, or be duct-taped to a wall.

• Don’t forget to take photos of your reading challenge in action and post them in a prominent places around the school as part of the celebration.

Email: libraryhelpdesk@dpsk12.org
Website: http://etls.dpsk12.org/library_services
Location: 1617 South Acoma Street, Denver, CO, USA
Phone: 720-423-1842