By Cole Finkelstein
Photo By Brittney Dayeh
Many students in today’s digital world only read books when told to, whether it’s for school or otherwise, so how can students be encouraged to read? Well, Willow High School librarian Brittney Dayeh thinks she has found a way.
Dayeh started holding contests and competitions that require students to read or write to win. Not only do students read outside of a pressured environment, but they also win prizes while doing it. “I would like to remind kids that reading can be fun,” Dayeh said.
The first competition the library held started on September 5, 2023. It was called the “Read, Write, Get!” competition. This contest featured students reading a new book from the library and writing a review on it. It was that simple–no word count or any other criteria. This helped students be more eager to compete.
What probably made students even more eager were the prizes. Every student who submitted a review would have a choice of one item from the library “treasure box” containing small toys, candy, and other knick knacks. Every writer would also have a chance to win a $25, $15, or $10 gift card to Starbucks.
In October, the library opened up two new contests to any interested readers, writers, or artists. The first contest was called “Haunted Book,” which featured students reading a full book from a select list of books. If a student found one with either a pumpkin or a ghost, that student would win a small prize.
The other contest was called the “Banned Books Art and Poetry Contest,” which was more challenging and even thought-provoking. Started during National Banned Books Week, students had to read a banned book then submit either a poem or a drawing based on the novel chosen. Doing this would give students a chance to win gift cards to Blue Cypress Books, a local used book store.
The contest also had a build-up leading to it, which showed how important this one was. It encouraged students to read books that were especially controversial. Plus, as Ms. Dayeh put it, “A lot of the best books ever written are banned.”
Banned books also teach valuable lessons that students often could only learn from said books. “A lot of banned books are banned because they feature something that makes people uncomfortable,” Dayeh said. “Learning about this can help someone learn about humanity.”
There are currently two competitions being held. One features students searching for the genre and call number of a selected book that changes each day. This one isn’t too hard, and the only prize is a choice of one thing from the treasure box.
The other contest features bingo cards with different reading challenges. When students complete five in a row, they get a prize, including Starbucks gift cards, Blue Cypress gift cards, snacks, and more.
These competitions definitely accomplished their goal of getting kids to read, and the future challenges will continue to do so. Speaking of, I’m very excited for future opportunities to learn and win prizes at the same time. And if these challenges have inspired you, Ms. Dayeh has said that she is open to suggestions for future games.
