I’m sure y’all remember the Summer Reading Program at your public library? Kids compete to see who can read the most books during the month of June. It can get pretty heated*.
Ellie set herself a goal of 100 books and completed it in a week and a half. So we did some math, factored in camps and trips, and she set a new goal of 300 books by the end of the program.
She read 345 (partially because I numbered an entire page wrong and she had more on the list than she thought she did).
Ellie not only won her category (2nd grade girls) but she also won the medal for Top Overall Reader by about twice as many as the next highest reader!
The best part (for me) is that she didn’t spend a whole lot more time reading than she usually does, she just chose “short books” instead of her typical chapter books. Ellie says she is glad to be back to reading for fun and that she has retired from “Competitive Reading.” Other competitions would be OK.
*More about competitive academics another time.
Yay for Ellie! We run a great summer reading program but strive to make it non-competitive. I think kids are encouraged to track the hours they read rather than the number of books.
That’s an awesome achievement. My kid’s school runs a reading competition to encourage kids to use the library. My little one reads the bare minimum of library books because she doesn’t want to win and get her name on the wall…
At least she’s reading lots of books from home.
Congratulations Ellie – well done! I love to read; it’s my favorite way to learn (horse books are, of course, my absolute favorite ;o)
Ellie reminds me of Al. Al could not sit still until she learned to read. We STILL share our best books with one another. I just spent a week with her at the OBX reading! Hooray Ellie. you know what’s good for yoU!