Posts Tagged 'Readathon'
02 May 2012 at 10:22
Year 7 students at The Hayling College, Hampshire, are having a great time with their first ever Readathon, launched on World Book Day (1st March). So far the 104 pupils have read 423 books, racking up over £1,000 in sponsorship pledges and earning £200 worth of free books for their school library.
The keenest reader, pictured here, has read an astonishing 38 books, ranging from abridged Shakespeare to Anthony Horowitz. She said: "I read all the time but now there’s even more reason because it’s helping to raise money for charity."
Even relucatant readers have been transformed into bookworms by the buzz of Readathon. Said one: ‘I’d never read, but I made an effort as it was for charity – now I can’t stop reading."
All the children have twice weekly 25-minute sessions to read towards their Readathon challenge as well as an hour every fortnight, but they are all making their own time to get ahead.
"Our pupils have adored the challenge of Readathon," says Lorraine Corram, Head of English at The Hayling College. "This is the first year we have participated, and we have had such an amazing response."
(Photo by kind courtesy of The News, Portsmouth)
Tags: Readathon | reluctant readers | Hampshire | Portsmouth | Hayling College
Posted in school success stories | No Comments
13 March 2012 at 11:50
Readathon was delighted to be invited to provide the judges for a creative writing competition run by Build A Book, which provides creative writing workshops for Gloucestershire primary school children.
Entrants were invited to colour in a snowy scene and write a paragraph inspired by the picture. The many fabulous entries were judged by two children's authors who work for Readathon, Brough Girling and Francesca Stich.
Three lucky winners each received the prize of a free place on a Build A Book workshop, plus lots of Build A Book goodies. In first place was Madison (7) from Leckhampton School with "Just the Way Mr Snowman likes it". A close second was Daniel (8) of Lakeside Primary School and his "Golden Penguin". Lewis (11) of Warden Hill Primary School was in third place with "Slicing through the icy snow".
Here's Madison's winning story:
"One frosty and cold day - just the way Mr Snowman liked it - some children ran out and said, "It's snowing!" So they put on a woolly scarf and a cuddly hat and a warm coat. Then the two boys started having a snow ball fight by Mr Snowman. He was terrified. Then some children went tobogganing down the hill. Mr Snowman will be squashed! Suddenly he started to move..."
Tags: Gloucestershire | Readathon | creative writing | Brough Girling | Francesca Stich
Posted in Build A Book | No Comments
21 December 2011 at 12:12
With just a few days left of 2011, Readathon is starting to fill its 2012 calendar with significant book-related dates, including the bicentenary of the birth of Charles Dickens.
In recognition of their huge contribution in encouraging children and young people to read for pleasure, Readathon's founders, Brough Girling and Gail Girling, have been invited to join HRH The Queen in marking the great author's bicentenary at Buckingham Palace on 14th February 2012.
We'd love to hear from any Readathon participants who choose a Dickens book for their sponsored read. Abridged, child-friendly versions are available for younger readers - and there's even an edition of A Christmas Carol illustrated by that ultimate child-friendly artist, Quentin Blake!
For more information about the full programme of the Dickens 2012 celebrations, please click here.
Tags: Charles Dickens | Brough Girling | Readathon | 2012
Posted in Dickens 2012 | No Comments
27 September 2011 at 12:47
Hawkesbury Primary School in South Gloucestershire enjoyed a memorable launch for its recent Readathon with a visit from the charity’s founder and children’s author, Brough Girling.
Brough spent time in each classroom, reading stories, telling jokes and answering their questions about what it’s like to write books.
In assembly, Brough entertained staff and children alike with anecdotes about his friend Roald Dahl, Readathon’s first chairman. The children were particularly intrigued by Dahl’s boyhood encounter with Beatrix Potter.
“The free books from Readathon are especially welcome as we are working hard to expand and modernize our Infant and Junior Libraries in the face of substantial budget cuts,” says Mrs Louise Lewis, Head Teacher.
“We are also keen to demonstrate to our pupils that reading and writing are lifelong pleasures of equal interest and value to boys and girls, so a visit by a male author was really constructive. We love supporting children’s charities too.
“I recommend Readathon to any school that wants to enthuse their pupils about reading, to build their library stocks and to find a different way of raising money for charity. With Readathon, everybody wins.”
Brough Girling also enjoyed his visit.
“What a lovely village school!” he remarked.
“The wonderful thing about schools and young people, is that even in today’s economic climate, they are still eager to raise money for those less fortunate than themselves,” he says.
Tags: Readathon | primary school | reading | boys reading | sponsored read
Posted in free books | authors | school visits | Readathon sponsored read | No Comments
