Tell us about your school and the need for news books to help your students keep reading over the summer. This is the question we posed to educators across the country to answer for a chance to win the Dav Pilkey Summer Reading Educator Contest. Over 6,000 teachers shared with us the dire need for books for their school and classroom libraries as, on average, classroom libraries across the country contain only half the recommended amount of books per class size, and are often funded by teachers themselves. Findings from the Scholastic Teacher & Principal School Report: Equity in Education reveal that regardless of school poverty level, 31% of teachers have fewer than 50 books in their classroom libraries and more than half of teachers (56%) use their own money to purchase books.
This is a particularly crucial time to get kids excited about reading for fun before they depart for summer break. Despite conventional wisdom, six in 10 children ages 6–17 enjoy reading books over the summer, according to the Scholastic Kids & Family Reading Report™: 6th Edition, but too many kids lack access to books when school is not in session.
Michael Haggen, Chief Academic Officer, Scholastic Education says: "We know that when children don't have access to books, they have less of an opportunity to practice and develop the reading skills that allow them to achieve academic success. They may also lose the chance to learn more about themselves, other people and the world in which they live. Thanks to the Dav Pilkey Summer Reading Educator Contest, kids across the country will have beautiful, brand new books that will help them fall in love with reading."
55 winning schools (one from each U.S. state, D.C. and U.S. territory*) will now receive a set of 500 books for their school from Caldecott Honor artist and creator of the bestselling Captain Underpants and Dog Man.
"We all know that reading is important, but there's a certain kind of reading that is life-changing: reading for fun. Studies have shown the benefits of making a habit out of reading for fun—not only does it help our brains stay sharp over summer vacation, but it also makes us more empathetic," said Dav Pilkey, "This is not only life-changing, but also world-changing. I have such admiration for all the educators who participated in this contest—they are great advocates for their students and communities, and they too are changing the world."
Congratulations to the winning schools and thanks to everyone who participated! The schools are listed below and here as well.
- Hanceville Elementary School, Hanceville, Alabama
- Talkeetna Elementary, Talkeetna, Alaska
- Hualapai Elementary School, Kingman, Arizona
- England Elementary, England, Arkansas
- Hoover Elementary, Indio, California
- Irving Elementary School, Pueblo, Colorado
- West Bristol School, Bristol, Connecticut
- North Georgetown Elementary, Georgetown, Delaware
- Riverdale Elementary, Orlando, Florida
- Cowan Road Elementary, Griffin, Georgia
- Paia Elementary School, Paia, Hawaii
- Desert Springs Elementary, Nampa, Idaho
- McCutcheon Elementary School, Chicago, Illinois
- Global Preparatory Academy, Indianapolis, Indiana
- Moulton-Udell Community School, Moulton, Iowa
- Frances Willard Elementary, Kansas City, Kansas
- Highland Elementary, Owensboro, Kentucky
- Loranger Elementary, Loranger, Louisiana
- Indian Island School, India Island, Maine
- Hillcrest Elementary School, Frederick, Maryland
- Lt. Clayre Sullivan School, Holyoke, Massachusetts
- Cleveland Elementary School, Port Huron, Michigan
- Whittier International Elementary, Minneapolis, Minnesota
- Lumberton Elementary School, South Lumberton, Mississippi
- Salem Lutheran School, St. Louis, Missouri
- Southside Elementary School, Wolf Point, Montana
- St. Mary's School, Bellevue, Nebraska
- Doral Academy-Fire Mesa, Las Vegas, Nevada
- Dr. Norman Crisp Elementary, Nashua, New Hampshire
- Ann Street Elementary School, Newark, New Jersey
- University Hills Elementary, Las Cruces, New Mexico
- P.S. 48, Bronx, New York
- Rockfish Hoke Elementary, Raeford, North Carolina
- Erik Ramstad Middle School, Minot, North Dakota
- Brantner Elementary, Cincinnati, Ohio
- Apache Elementary, Apache, Oklahoma
- Maple Elementary School, Springfield, Oregon
- Jackson School, York, Pennsylvania
- Gladstone Street Elementary, Cranston, Rhode Island
- Northside Elementary School, Rock Hill, South Carolina
- Hawthorne Elementary School, Sioux Falls, South Dakota
- Rockford Elementary School, Rockford, Tennessee
- Deweyville Elementary School, Orange, Texas
- East Midvale Elementary, Midvale, Utah
- Ferrisburgh Central School, Ferrisburgh, Vermont
- Park Avenue Elementary School, Danville, Virginia
- Garfield Elementary School, Olympia, Washington
- Rowlesburg School, Rowlesburg, West Virginia
- Wileman Elementary School, Delavan, Wisconsin
- Ten Sleep School, Ten Sleep, Wyoming
- Thomson Elementary, Washington, D.C.
- D.L. Perez Elementary School, Yigo, Guam
- Saipan SDA School, Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands
- John B. Watson School, Rincon, Puerto Rico
- Calvary Christian Academy, Charlotte Amalie, U.S. Virgin Islands
*No eligible entries were received from the U.S. territory America Samoa.
Save the date! The Scholastic Summer Reading Challenge begins on May 8 - a free, online reading program that will motivate kids to read over the summer months. To sign-up, visit scholastic.com/summer. 
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