Read to Succeed Program
Six Flags Theme Parks once again sponsored the “Read to Succeed” incentive program, offering free admission to their Six Flags theme parks during the 2016 season. But, if you want free admission, you have to earn it. Six Flags set up their program with one healthy requirement: students must complete a minimum of six hours of recreational reading outside of school. Each participating district was encouraged to establish the timeframe for eligibility. Students at Indian Mills School were encouraged to complete their reading logs between Dec. 2015 and Feb. 2016.
Mrs. Sherry DuBoff, a Response to Intervention reading teacher at Indian Mills School related, they could read books, magazines, newspapers, or comic books, but homework assignments were specifically prohibited to be logged as part of the six hours. “It contained all the earmarks of the perfect catalyst to supercharge an already robust reading program promoted daily in each grade in the school.” All the teachers at IMS in grades kindergarten through fourth grade encouraged their students to meet or exceed the goal and they did just that.
Students who achieved the reading goal were honored at Indian Mills Elementary School’s kickoff assembly for the National Education Association’s Read Across America celebration, an annual reading motivation and awareness program that calls for every child in every community to celebrate reading on and around March 2, the birthday of beloved children’s author Dr. Seuss.
In the final tally, IMS recorded 85 students from all grades who successfully completed the reading challenge and joined the Read to Succeed Six Hour Reading Club. According to a Six Flags spokesperson, all students will receive their free admission tickets in May, 2016. “A well-deserved reward for a tremendous achievement. It must be true; reading really is fun-damental,” he said.
And, as Dr. Seuss always said, “You’re never too old, too wacky, too wild, to pick up a book.” It is pretty obvious that the teachers at Indian Mills School have set an enviable standard for success in a reading program that transcends the classroom.
