The children are VERY excited about the medals they receive for reading. Not only are the students wearing the medals, but I have seen parents wearing them, too. I saw a cashier at a store wearing 7 medals, and I asked her, ‘Is that a 100 Book Challenge medal?’ The woman held it up and said, ‘It sure is, honey!’ She has 2 or 3 children in the program.
—Assistant Superintendent, Camden City School District, NJ
A quiet young fifth grader became our school’s first 100 Step medal winner. His peers cheered for him when his name was announced over the loud speaker. Everyone began asking each other what step they were on. Then they started sharing their favorite books and helping each other. When we bought this program we did not anticipate the collegial spirit it would inspire and the truest sense of community. Our kids are really loving reading!
—Wissahickon Charter School, PA
The students are enthused about reading and are very excited about being on TV, which is where they receive their medals for the increments of 100 Steps. You could hear students saying, ‘If I read 2 more Steps, I’ll be there,’ or, ‘…I’ll get my sticker for my chart.’ They are counting ahead to see where they will be.
—Orange River Elementary School, FL
As far as incentives go, what is wrong with a child getting a gold medal after every 25 hours of reading? My students wear them every time we have a school-wide celebration. We reward athletes with trophies and attendance with certificates. Some of my students have never been recognized for anything academic. This is the first time and there is the opportunity for every child to improve and more read daily. Every student has the same opportunity to succeed, regardless of their independent reading level.
—Baltimore County Public Schools, MD
[From] Kindergarten up into the Intermediate grades…the students still love to hear their names announced over the PA system for the amount of [15-minute] Steps they read and proudly display their gold medals for every 100 Steps.
—Elementary Principal, School District of Philadelphia, PA
Struggling readers were experiencing success since they were able to self-select books at their ‘just right’ level. The embedded incentive component encouraged our students to want to read more and move levels. As a reading teacher, I was so excited to hear my students discussing books. They were actually recommending book titles to each other. I also noticed a strong interest in the selection of non-fiction text.
—Reading Teacher, Baltimore County Public Schools, MD