St. Paul School reading challenge begins

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By Anne Marie Amacher
The Catholic Messenger

DAVENPORT — Students from St. Paul the Apostle Catholic School have been challenged to send their principal “to the roof” in a summer reading challenge.

Principal Julie Delaney said, “The reading committee and I were brainstorming ways to get the students to read over the summer.

“Studies suggest that children who read as few as six books over the summer maintain the level of reading skills they achieved during the preceding school year. Reading more books leads to even greater success.”

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Sixth- and eighth-grade students have had reading challenges throughout the school year, so the committee decided to make a school-wide challenge.

If students who completed kindergarten through seventh grade this academic year read a total of 250,000 pages (tracked on logs provided for various grade levels), Delaney will spend a day on the school’s roof next fall.

“When children are provided with 10 to 20 self-selected children’s books at the end of the regular school year, as many as 50 percent not only maintain their skills, but actually make reading gains,” she noted from studies.

She said the committee decided to send her to the roof because it had done that at another school and it motivated students. “It also has been fun to say ‘Send Mrs. Delaney through the ceiling and to the roof!’”

Reading lists from the Association for Library Service to Children by grade levels are on the school’s website, which also includes recommended books from St. Paul’s teachers.

Delaney will send out emails and update the website throughout the summer to help keep the students motivated.
The reading challenge is underway as the last day of school was May 29.


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