The Reading Championship!

We all know that reading is THE most essential skill for students to master and at Lely Elementary, we focus like a laser on reading. Over the course of the year, we have developed an extensive reading incentive program to hook kids into reading. I've never been one to champion incentives for reading because I think once kids find "their books" they will read ravenously for the rest of their lives. It's all about the search for the books that match the student. Part of the art of teaching is making that match between students and books. 

When kids do not even attempt to read books, an incentive program is appropriate. After all, we are trying to hook them on reading and if an incentive furthers that cause, I'm all for it. Once they find the books they love, they will be off and reading on their own without any need for incentives. 

Our program has evolved over the course of the year into what it is today, and it may still grow. We set aside one day per quarter to celebrate the kids' accomplishments in reading. On that special day, all kids who reach their reading goals get a certificate and a Lely Elementary Reading Goals Brag Tag. They also get a cookie-decorating kit from the cafeteria. We mail a post card home so parents can see that their kiddo has been recognized for their reading; a parent connection is important. Kids who attain 100+ Reading Counts Points (Reading Counts is our reading program at Lely Elementary) are recognized as Century Club Members and get special perks (additional certificate, pizza, etc). To top it all off, we crown a Reading Champion Class each quarter. The class that has the greatest percentage of kids reaching their reading goals is crowned the Reading Champion for the quarter.

The reading championship is hotly contested and the kids really get into it. Often we will see kids encouraging each other to check out another book or read over the weekend so that they can more easily reach their reading goal. They are generating a positive peer pressure that recognizes the class as a community of readers. Kids recommend books to each other, talk about books, and come to the library multiple times per week. We, as the media team, keep tabs on their reading as well. The amount of traffic in the library has increased exponentially over the past year and we love the busy hive of learning that we are creating. 

On our reading celebration day, our principal, reading specialist, and media specialist walk around to all of the classrooms to deliver the good news to the kids and teachers. We pass out the certificates, recognize the Century Club winners, and celebrate all of their accomplishments. Most of the time, the kids are waiting to see if they will be crowned Reading Champions. We make sure to take the trophy with us to all of the classrooms. When the kids see that trophy come through their door, there is an audible gasp from the kids. It is awesome!

Mrs. Palmer's Q4 Reading Champions

This quarter, for the first time, we had a tie for the Lely Elementary Reading Championship. Mrs. Palmer's third grade class was one of the winners. This is a class that had a few kids reach their reading goals during the first quarter of the year. As the year went on, Mrs. Palmer coached and cheered on these kids so that more reached their goals during second and third quarter. During fourth quarter, this group was determined! They worked so hard and pushed each other to win the Lely Elementary Reading Championship. Neighboring classes knew something was going on in this room when they were presented with the trophy. Things got loud!

Mrs. Carbonell's Q4 Reading Champions

Mrs. Carbonell's class was the defending champion! In fact, this class was the Q2 AND Q3 champion. Only once before had we had a back-to-back winner. Mrs. Carbonell's class is now the only three-time champion in Lely Elementary history. To win three times is an awesome achievement but to win for three consecutive quarters is simply amazing! These kids were excited readers all year long and were frequent visitors to our media center.

The reading celebration day each quarter is always such a fun day. It is a day that kids really look forward to and the excitement is apparent on their faces as we walk the campus with certificates and trophy in hand. We are doing everything that we can to hook our kids on reading and this incentive plan has proven to be a hit!

We are working on some big surprises in the media center for next year. Stay tuned for more updates in the coming weeks. We're incredibly excited!