Massachusetts Children's Book Award Project Helps Build a Culture of Reading

Massachusetts Children's Book Awards Project Helps Create a Culture of Reading at Pierce School

by Joan Hamilton


A sixth grade girl, who by her own admission is a reluctant reader, stood looking over the cart of books nominated for the Massachusetts Children Book Awards and told her friend, "These are all really good books."


All fifth and sixth grade students at Pierce School are now about half-way through the Massachusetts Book Awards Reading Project. Most book awards that children learn about, such as the Newbery, the Caldecott, the Coretta Scott King, the Pure Belpre Award and various others are chosen in committees made up of teachers, librarians, book store owners, and/or children's literature professors -- in other words, adults choose the books that receive the awards. The state book awards are different. They are nominated by children and adults, but voted upon exclusively by children. In order to be eligible to vote a child must read at least five of twenty-five nominated titles. This is the sixth year that all fifth and sixth graders have participated in these awards, and as in years past, we find a constant buzz of excitement around the book cart, as students talk to one another about what they have read, and what they plan to read next.


Creating a culture of reading in school or home can be a daunting challenge. According to a Boston Globe article, a recent report by the National Endowment for the Arts entitled "To Read or Not to Read: A Question of National Consequence," presents some fairly bleak findings about reading and young people -- such as, "The average person between ages 15 and 24 spends two to two and a half hours a day watching television and only seven minutes reading." One of the most interesting findings in the report is that, "regardless of income, levels of reading for pleasure correlate closely with levels of social life, voting, and political activism, participation in culture and fine arts, volunteerism, charity work and even regular exercise." In other words the poorest readers are more community-minded and concerned about their fellow human beings that the richest non-readers.

That quote makes me realize how important it is for Pierce School to continue programs that encourage love of reading, such as the Massachusetts Children Book Awards; and for me to continue with "every child will become a life-long lover of reading" as one of my major goals. It goes beyond the correlation with academic success. Having our kids love reading is an investment in the future our country -- in how we live in community, participate in democracy and maintain healthy lifestyles. How can we not do everything in our power to promote it?