Chief Minister’s Reading Challenge 2024 sets goal to beat 2023 participation

Chief Minister Eva Lawler says she wants to break records with the 2024 Reading Challenge, fostering literacy, engagement, and lifelong learning across the Territory’s schools.

Students of Ross Park Primary School celebrate completion of the 2023 Chief Minister's Reading Challenge. Picture: File

The Chief Minister has thrown down the gauntlet, launching the 2024 Reading Challenge and this year she says she is hoping break records.

The annual challenge sees students from transition to year 6 right across the Territory attempt to read 12 books per student over a 24 week period.

But this year the goal is to surpass the 11,235 students across 69 schools that took part in the challenge in 2023.

The aim of the challenge is to get more students to fall in love with reading, help with literacy skills, increase engagement with schools and improve lifelong learning.

Chief Minister Eva Lawler said the challenge was a different way to try help students get better at a key life skill.

Students of Braitling Primary School celebrate completion of the 2023 Chief Minister's Reading Challenge. Picture: File

“The Chief Minister’s Reading Challenge is all about improving a child’s development and fostering a love for reading,” she said.

“Reading is a core foundation for success, it helps children learn about sounds, words and language, stimulates the imagination and helps students connect with one another.

“Last year we witnessed a huge uptake of the reading challenge within our remote school which is an indication of the positive direction our education system is heading.”

Remote schools were a large driver behind the 166,629 books read last year, with Larapinta Primary school in Alice Springs having 286 take up the challenge.

Students of Larapinta Primary School celebrate completion of the 2023 Chief Minister's Reading Challenge and had the most students take part. Picture: File

Education Minister Mark Monaghan said the Reading Challenge was an important initiative to get behind.

“There is nothing more important than reading in the early years of a student’s schooling journey,” he said.

“The reason the Chief Minister’s Reading Challenge has been so successful is not only the lifelong benefits which derive from reading at a young age, but it enables students to participate in a healthy competition between other schools.

“We saw this last year with three Central Australian based schools fighting for top spot in the challenge.”

All schools are encouraged to get involved with the challenge, which comes to an end on Friday August 23.