From February 22-March 5, middle school students had the opportunity to take part in a variety of activities over two weeks to promote reading and the love of literature during our annual Reading Appreciation Program. 

The program was full of activities including the masked readers, an escape room, a “guess the author” contest, and homeroom stories. All of the activities were posted through Schoology so students on campus and virtual could participate.

Each day, masked readers were featured where a teacher or staff member read from a favorite book while wearing a mask. Students had to use their deductive reasoning skills and a little luck to try and figure out the reader and the book they were reading. It was challenging but so many students rose to the challenge and came up with the correct answers!  Students who got the correct answers were eligible to win a $10 Amazon gift card. 

Students also participated in a virtual escape room where they collaborated as teams to solve puzzles and use their critical thinking skills. They could also take part in a “guess the author” contest where they were given clues each day and had to figure out who the clues were about.

One homeroom was spent writing homeroom storieswhere students picked a prompt and each student wrote one sentence in the story. There were some crazy stories, but it was a really fun way to get the students thinking about reading and writing and awakening their creativity. Teacher judges voted for the best story at each grade level, and the winning homerooms received Krispy Kreme donuts. Students were also encouraged to read during homeroom, which was set aside as DEAR times (Drop Everything and Read!). 

The event brought collaboration, creativity, and broader exposure to reading and writing, helping to cultivate a deeper passion for literature.