This year, Friary students in Years 7-9 were challenged to read 6 to 10 books from a range of genres over the course of the year. Once read, they would fill out an online form, and complete a short piece of independent work on the book. The aim was to not only get the children reading, but also to expose them to genres they might not have thought of or tried before. The online form also was set up to recommend other books to them of a similar ilk if they had enjoyed the book they’d just read.
67 students in total got involved, with 2 students hitting the 10 books goal in the first term! 12 students managed to read all 10 books by the deadline, and a further 8 read 6 or more. These were all invited to a prize giving where they received a certificate, sweet treat, 10 HPs for each book read, and were entered into a draw for their share of £100 worth of amazon vouchers.
After the draw the following students won Amazon vouchers:
£20 – Byron Challoner & Estee Wong
£15 – Charlotte Anderson, Luke Bebbington, Amelia Windeler & Caleb Cheung.
Some of the independent work produced as part of the challenge was so beautiful that it featured in the third issue of the Friary E-Zine. Students had the opportunity to rate the books they read, in order for us to tailor future reading challenges. Students have said they enjoyed the challenge for opening their eyes to new genres or solidifying their love of specific genres. The London Eye Mystery by Siobhan Dowd was the book most read by students, and based on their ratings, A Castle of Tangled Magic by Sophie Anderson was a firm favourite.
For those who are inspired, you can find out “Read your way around the world” reading lists on the school website.
Abi Wright, project lead, said; “It has been fantastic seeing how many students have gotten involved and chatting animatedly about stories I scouted out last summer for them. We look forward to launching this again next year with the new Year 7s!”
