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Regardless of ethnicity, socioeconomic level, or previous achievement, children who read four or more books over the summer fare better on reading-comprehension tests in the fall than their peers who read one or no books over the summer.*

Read for the World Record is the main component of the Scholastic Summer Challenge. The interactive, web-based campaign encourages kids to choose books they want to read and log their reading minutes online in an attempt to set a new record for summer reading. The team competition feature is a major motivator for kids to read more over the summer so they will maintain and improve their academic skills.
  • Trial Runs begin in January and continue each month through April.
  • World-record attempt officially begins May 1 and concludes on August 31, 2010
  • Two world-record categories will be recognized in the 2011 Scholastic Book of World Records:
    • Total minutes read by ALL participating students across the U.S.
    • Top 20 schools with the most total minutes read
  • Official Web site: www.scholastic.com/summer
In addition to logging minutes for the Scholastic World Record, the Scholastic Summer Challenge site will have fun activities around books and reading for kids including: book-themed polls, games, message boards and sweepstakes. Other new and exciting features include:
  • Join A Genre Group – Kids can choose their favorite book genre and receive book recommendations.
  • Wish list – Kids can create a book wish list and email it to their parent/caregiver.
  • Virtual Rewards – Kids will be receiving virtual rewards when they reach reading milestones.
  • LIVE Webcasts – The challenge will kick-off on April 30, 2010 with Summer Challenge LIVE!, the book trivia game show for classrooms.
  • Teacher and Librarian Tool Kits – Resources to help educators get kids excited about summer reading.
  • Summer Challenge 2010 Book List – Curetted in part by teachers and Scholastic book experts, the book list will suggest books for early readers through YA.
* Jimmy Kim, “Summer Reading and the Ethnic Achievement Gap,” The Journal of Education for Students Placed at Risk (2004).