My Reading Streak

Hi! I'm Lindsey! Last year when I was in 4th grade, my teacher, Mrs. Hartman, read a couple chapters of The Reading Promise near the end of the school year, to my classmates and I. It was about a girl in 4th grade (just like me!) and her dad that made a promise to read every single night for 100 nights! Once they got that achieved, they made another promise to read for 1,000 nights in a row!

When Mrs. Hartman read just the first and second chapters of that book I got inspired to do that with my mom. So on May 30th, 2012 my mom and I started to read the book: Now You See Me... It was great! It was also part of the Poison Apple series. Since I had the first six books in that series we started reading all of them! Each of the books were between 150-180 pages.

From May 30th to November 21st my mom and I have read the 3rd, 4th, 5th and we are almost done the 6th book of the Poison Apple series! We also have read 172 nights in a row, so far! I remember when my mom and I reached 50 nights in a row! I freaked out!

When my mom and I reached 100 nights I couldn't believe it!  Then came 150 nights! I was so happy I couldn't stay still! My mom and I are now trying to reach 200 nights! I think we can do it! If we complete that we are going to go for how long we can go, and hopefully never stop!

Thank you for reading my short story and hopefully you got inspired too!

The Stay at Home Teacher's Promise: Including the Family

Back in August, I received an email from Mrs. Hartman about Alice Ozma and The Reading Promise.  I found it ironic that I received this note on this particular evening because I had just had an especially wonderful reading time with my then 13 month old son.  One of the stories we read that night was Ten Little Ladybugs. I can remember bringing this book out a few months before and Colin showing little interest.   On this night, however, it was as if the whole book opened up for him. He was mesmerized by the pages, "counting" the ladybugs, and finding them on the page.  As I was putting him down to bed, I actually whispered in his ear how much I cherish all our reading cuddles.  In my moment of joy, my heart ached wishing my husband could take part in this time too. He is active duty Air Force and has been away from home since July and will not return till Christmas. When I received Mrs. Hartman’s email, I had already made several recordings of my husband reading story books to my son.  He also did one of the Hallmark recordable books.  Although I had these recordings I wasn’t consistent with playing them for my son.  

Reading with Daddy at 3 months old

Once I heard about The Reading Promise I knew that mine and my son’s reading promise would be a little different than others.  After several years as a teacher (three of which were at Sinking Springs, go Panthers!) I am now a stay at home mom.  At least for now, reading to my son throughout the day is something we do without even having to think about it.  I don’t think we have missed a day of reading since he was six months old.  My husband, on the other hand, is rarely given this opportunity.  I decided then that our reading promise would be Daddy “reading” at least one story a day to our son.  Starting August 21^st, Colin and I listened to one of Daddy’s stories each day.  We were also fortunate enough to visit Daddy shortly after this where he was able to read in person.  These days are always the best.  Unfortunately, after a few weeks it became apparent that some days Colin didn’t want to listen to Daddy’s story.  Although only a toddler, he is well aware of his Daddy’s absence and it seems the stories are a reminder that he is not here.  

Our reading promise was in need of some adjustments.  Not only is my sweet Colin often separated from his Daddy he’s also hundreds of miles away from his grandparents, aunts, and uncles.  I decided to add all of them to our reading promise.   Now, in order to keep our Streak going, Colin must listen to at least one family member other than Mommy each day.  Just like Alice and her father, Colin listens to the family member just before bed.  I make sure it is the first story we do each night so that I don’t accidentally forget.  He’s not quite old enough to remind me yet.  I have audio and video recordings of family members on my iPhone that we use most often.  On evenings when our schedules align, Daddy reads a story over the phone in real-time, and whenever we are visiting family or they are visiting us Colin will get his story read in person.  

Reading with Pappy as part of the Streak

We have been going strong with the Streak so far. I have to admit that there have been a few nights Colin has had a babysitter or he's fallen asleep in the care late in the evening and we missed our reading promise story. I guess it can't be a Streak with missed nights. I've figured out some solutions like playing one of the recorded stories in the car during those unexpected late nights. Since I can't even remember the date of our last missed night, we will officially call today, November 12, 2012, Day 1 of our Reading Promise Streak. 

How can our reading promise relate to yours?  Perhaps you have a relative far away that you’d like your child to be able to connect with or maybe your child’s father travels for work as well and you’d like him to continue being a part of everyday life at home.  Maybe you have to work late or you’re busy taking care of another child but still want to read to your other child.  

I have lots of hopes and dreams for our reading promise.  I know that it will evolve over the coming years.  I imagine my son writing emails to his grandmother about chapter books they are reading together and listening to stories with ear buds on long car rides.  No matter how our reading promise changes, one thing I know for sure, my son will be read to every day.

Jackie Goodwillie

www.thestayathometeacher.blogspot.com

It's Never Too Early to Start

Hi everyone, Katie here. I’m a friend of Mrs. Hartman’s, and I’m thrilled to contribute some of my thoughts on reading and reading promises.

I figured out the best way to read to my squirmy-wormy baby: get on his level!

Recently I was talking to a friend about the fact that I love reading books to my 12-week-old son Luke. He seemed a bit surprised, commenting on the fact that Luke is obviously too young to understand the story.

Yes and no, I told him. While Luke may be too young to understand the complex notions of characters and plot development, he can certainly appreciate the brightly-colored pictures, the easy-to-grasp cardboard pages, and the intonation of my voice as I read to him. In fact, these are all vital to his development.

Luke’s mental growth is only part of the reason why I place so much value on reading to him, even as an infant. I also believe that the act of reading books creates a special bond between parent and child. When you’re reading together, you’re also exploring, questioning, and learning together. You’re laughing and crying together. In essence, you’re growing together.

Creating a reading promise is the perfect way to foster such growth. I’m so excited to continue my reading journey with Luke! Tonight we’ll be reading Dear Zoo, a lift-the-flap book by Rod Campbell. It’s one of Luke’s favorites already!

Dear Zoo by Rod Campbell

Guest Post by Katie McLaughlin

Sinking Springs Family Book Club

UPDATE: We have chosen to postpone the book club at this time and reschedule it for a later date this winter yet to be determined. Look for updated dates/times and additional information coming soon.

After last week's visit from author, Alice Ozma, we hope that families and students at Sinking Springs are eager and ready to begin their own reading promises with someone.

As the next part of Sinking Springs' Reading Promise Project, we are looking for families who want to join us in the effort to make reading a special part of their everyday lives. Making time to fit reading into your schedule each day can be challenging. Finding ways to help your adolescent develop a love for reading can be daunting. To help you achieve these goals, Sinking Springs will be offering a family book club, based on Alice's book, The Reading Promise. 

Families who register to attend the first book club meeting will have the opportunity to:

• Connect with other Sinking Springs families to meet and discuss Alice Ozma's book, The Reading Promise.

• Discover new ways to encourage their children to develop a love of reading.

• Find out strategies for reading and discussing books with their children at home.

• Develop a support system of other families taking on reading promises and share ideas, successes, and challenges.

• Receive a FREE copy of Alice Ozma's book, The Reading Promise.

• Learn more about a variety of free reading resources available. 

• Win prizes to promote reading with their children. 

• Become guest bloggers on this blog.

The first meeting is scheduled for Monday, November 12 and additional meetings may be scheduled, depending on the availability and interest of participants. Throughout families' reading promise experiences, this blog will serve to connect readers and their promises, not only just from Sinking Springs, but all readers who wish to share about the reading promises happening in their lives.  

If you are a Sinking Springs member and want to join us for this excellent opportunity, click here to read additional information and register online.

If you are a guest visiting us from outside of Sinking Springs, but still want to join our conversation, connect with other readers, and share your reading promise experiences, please do! Join our ever-growing community of guest bloggers. Comment on our discussions and contact us to discuss ways that you can share your reading experiences through this blog. We'd love to have you!

Day 21: Streak Update

I remember learning somewhere along my educational career that it takes sixty repetitions of doing something before it becomes a habit. While my reading streak with my son is nowhere near sixty days yet, I am starting to feel like we are falling into more of a routine with our reading.

Anytime we're sitting together and we have a free moment between playing or eating or rolling or eating or playing or (occasionally) napping, it is becoming more automatic for me to pick up a book, find a cozy spot, and curl up with my little man to read to him.

He's seeming to enjoy our reading experiences together more each day. While books are still a favorite chew toy for him, he likes to look at the pictures, grab at the fun extras (flaps, tags, finger puppets, etc.) that baby books are so lovingly known for, and cuddle up listening on my lap.

In My Patch by Sara Gillinghan, a current favorite because of the adorable mouse finger puppet.

In fact, the other day, out of his entire bag of toys, he reached in and grabbed a book. And while I'm almost positive (I'd be completely positive if it weren't for that tiny bit of wishful thinking) that this just happened to be pure coincidence because the book was near the top of the pile, it didn't make me love it any less.

Hope your reading promises are bringing you a smile each day. Please share! We'd love to hear.

Happy Reading!

Resolution 25: Stop Preaching & Start Leading

On one of my most recent searches for other families taking on their own reading promises, I came across a post on the blog 52 Weeks, 52 Resolutions, 1 Mom by Momma Holmes. After contacting her about her reading promise journey, she agreed to submit a guest blogger post about how The Reading Promise has inspired her. Check out the unique twist that she has given her reading promise to share the love of reading with her sons.

Last winter, in a monthly newsletter from my son’s first grade teacher, she mentioned the book The Reading Promise and how it really brought home for her how important reading with your child can be. I immediately went online and reserved it at the library. 

After I read The Reading Promise by Alice Ozma, I felt that I needed to do something. The obvious choice would have been to make a reading promise with my boy. Nope. I was too chicken. I mean some days it just doesn't fit into our life. Excuses, I know. But I just wasn't there. 

However, instead, I took Resolution 25 (stop preaching and start leading) to heart and started a Summer Book Club. I invited friends from all areas of my life, old friends, school friends, church friends, neighbors, swim friends. They all have early independent readers... I decided this was the age when many parents stop reading to their children because the children are now reading to themselves. 

I invited A LOT because I was afraid to invite just a few and have no one show up. Or commit. And I was asking for a commitment: read to your child even though we are encouraging them to read by themselves. It was a good thing I invited many because I only got one family from each of those groups. Read aloud a book I've chosen, and then come to my house for discussion, movie watching and comparison, and snacks. 

If you ask them, they will come. They gathered for discussion and snacks and movie. It was fun! The friends of my son would gather in a circle and take turns answering questions as simple as, "Who are the main characters?" or "What is the setting?" as well as more complex questions such as, "How are the characters in both books similar or different? Why?" They didn't say, "Aren't we going to watch the movie?" rather they seemed to enjoy the discussion. Then, during the movie, I would stop/start it to discuss comparisons between the book and the movie, without a complaint! It was A.W.E.S.O.M.E. 

This summer our books were Winn Dixie and Tale of Despereaux, both by Kate DiCamillo, and James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl. After watching James, the kids all asked what was next? I pointed out that we were already back in school and we might be too busy. It was unanimous... we are continuing through the school year. 

This month our choice is Indian in the Cupboard by Lynne Reid Banks and everyone in the group has ideas for what to read next, so now I will have to decide how to handle that because I LIKE CHOOSING THE BOOKS. 

So my promise to my son may not have been to read every day to him, but rather to continue to read to him. My promise was to encourage his friend's parents to continue reading to their now independent readers. My promise to read and lead has turned out to be so much fun! If you are interested in how to start your own group or are interested in discussing great reading options for your reader, please feel free to contact me through my blog. 

I am the author of the blog 52weeks52resolutions1mom.blogspot.com and mom to three young men, ages 7, 17 and 19. I am committed to raising the last son as “all in” as I was with the first two. Although I am no longer reading aloud to the oldest boys, I did convince them both to read for pleasure, and not only for school, during the summer. I consider that an accomplishment. I love reading and discussing books. In January, I pledged to do 52 realistic resolutions and not just one for the year. My blog details this journey and also the books I read along the way. 

Momma Holmes

What I Know to be True About Reading

At the beginning of every school year, I spend a lot of time with my students getting to know them as readers. It's important for me to understand their reading preferences, strengths, and goals, but it is important for them to do some reflection about themselves as readers.

One of the activities I have students complete is a list called 'What I Know To Be True About Reading.' This idea comes from Aimee Bucker's book, Notebook Connections: Strategies for the Reader's Notebook.

I start by sharing my list of truths about myself as a reader. Here are a few examples:

• I need to have a special place to curl up and read.
• I LOVE to read during thunderstorms.
• When I've finished a great book, I feel like I've lost a good friend.
• I believe that favorite books are meant to be read over and over again.
• Even though I know I shouldn't, I get really anxious during exciting parts in my book and skip over words to read more quickly and see what happens.

Then, I give students time to brainstorm their own personal truths. The ideas they come up with are always insightful and revealing. Here are some highlights from this year's reading truths:

• I love when my dad reads to me.
• I like to always have more books to read.
• I like books that challenge me. 
• I hate when I'm at the end and there's so much more to know.

Some kids share about the environment they like to have for reading:

• I like to read in privacy.
• I like to sit somewhere special when I read. 
• I need peace and quiet when I'm reading.

Others, about how it makes them feel:

• Reading calms me down. 
• I like reading when I'm sad. 
• When I read I feel calm but happy.

A few mention what they do after they've finished reading books:

• When I watch a movie related to my book it's never as good.
• I like telling my mom about good books.
• I like to share books that I have read to my mom and dad and my sister and brothers.
• When I finish a great book, I read it one more time.
• I like to write surveys about the book I've read.

Strengths and goals for improvement even come up!

• I read slow when I'm saying it out loud. I read fast when I say it in my brain.
• I like to have connections with the book.

Some make you chuckle:   

• I would read out loud but not when I'm reading a weird book. 

...and some are brutally honest:

• I think reading is boring on a nice day.
• Sorry, but I hate non-fiction books.

These reading truths can be a great way to begin your family's or classroom's reading promise. Learning about the children you are reading with is a great way to build a better connection with them and help to make your reading promise a fun and meaningful challenge. Try it out with your reader(s) today. Who knows what they might say. It just may surprise you...

Please share with us any of your reading truths or truths from your fellow reading promise readers. We'd love to hear!

Exciting News!

"It takes time to make magic happen." These wise words were given to me by author, Alice Ozma, during our emails back and forth after I finished reading her book. Immediately after I turned the last page, I knew I had to find a way for her to visit our school and spread her enthusiasm with Sinking Springs families.

Luckily, I am SO thrilled to say that the "magic" I was waiting for will finally be happening. Alice Ozma, author of The Reading Promise, will be visiting Central York School District on October 23rd!

Alice will be speaking with both students and families. During the day, she will be presenting to our fourth through sixth graders about reading. She will also have the opportunity to meet with a smaller group of students throughout the school who have a special interest in writing and aspire to be authors to chat with them about the writing process. In the evening, Alice will continue to spread her zest for reading by speaking with families. I cannot wait!

Central York families and local readers, to participate in this exciting opportunity to hear Alice speak and meet her during her book signing and photo time after her event, please visit the event registration page to register and find more information. Invite your families, friends, neighbors, and fellow readers. All are welcome to this event!

In the meantime, get excited and watch a preview of some of Alice's previous speaking engagements at San Diego public library and hear what others have to say about her work:

Day 13: Already? Really?

So I had considered the possibility of this happening, I just hadn't considered it happening so soon.

I debated writing a post about this for a few days now. I was so embarrassed! But then I realized that I have to. It is all a part of the process.

If I want the other families of the Reading Promise Project to feel comfortable sharing their successes and failures, I have an obligation to share mine.

So with that being said, I have to let you know that my first official reading streak with my son has already been broken. After 13 days. (Kinda makes you better appreciate Alice and her father's 3,218 night record.) Sigh. 13 days. Really?? Really.

Source: http://www.go4prophotos.com

I couldn't quite believe it myself. I thought we could at least make it two weeks. Two weeks. Come on! Then, it happened. It was a normal weekend day, just like any other. We didn't do anything exceptionally special or out of the ordinary. I have no good excuse to give you. Yet somehow, our daily reading slipped by us. Until about an hour after I put my son to bed and a sudden nagging realization hit me. Uh oh.....And since I am a strict believer in letting sleeping (and teething) babies lie, I decided waking him up to continue the streak would not be an option. So I accepted defeat... this time.

But no worries. Missing a day isn't the end of our reading together. A setback? Yes. A deal breaker? Definitely not. Life happens. One day was missed, and I'm sure there will be more will be in the future. But the shared joy of reading is something that still will continue with our family. In fact, we're already three days into our next streak. Let the reading begin (again)!

Joining you from NYC

Greetings to everyone at Sinking Springs Elementary School from NYC!

My name is Val.  I am a stay-at-home mom of two boys:  Simon and Ethan.  Today marks the 64th day of our reading streak.  I was so excited when Mrs. Hartman found me (via my blog) and invited us to share in your Reading Promise Project.

I came across Alice Ozma's book at our school book fair last spring.  I knew right away it was something I wanted to read.  Once I read it, I couldn't stop thinking about it, talking about it and being inspired by it.  After discussing the idea with my boys, we decided we'd try a little reading streak of our own.

Our summer reading streak began the first day of summer vacation (June 29) and was scheduled to end the last day of our break (September 5).  So technically, we're almost finished...

...Except, none of us want to stop.  We intend to keep reading and are currently figuring out how we will keep our streak going during the busy school year.

And now that we are part of your project, we feel all the more motivated.  I'll definitely be checking in with y'all throughout the school year.

If you'd like to hear about the books we've read so far, here's the list and links:

• The Boxcar Children
• From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
• Holes
• Sarah, Plain and Tall
• Charlotte's Web
• Schooled
• The Wolves of Willoughby Chase

I could wax for a while about how great I think reading aloud with our kids is.  But I think I'll refrain (this time).  Instead,  let me share what my boys have to say.

Ethan is almost 7 years old.  His favorite books in kindergarten were the Piggy and Gerald series by Mo Willems.  He continued working his way through all sorts of picture books in first grade, determined to catch up to his big brother (his hero and arch nemesis).  Next week, he will begin second grade.  His current reading project is the Boxcar children series.

Ethan likes me to read aloud to him because I read the books that are above his reading level... he figures that will help him catch up to Simon a little faster (strange competitive little kid... I swear I had nothing to do with that!).

Simon is 9 years old.  He'll be a 4th grader in just 6 days.  He's wild about basketball, creating detailed Lego structures and reading Manga.  He tells me he wants to be the 2nd best Anime-guy (?) in the world when he grows up.

Si was not a strong reader for the longest time.  He recognized only a few words going into 1st grade.  Per Simon, he entered 2nd grade at the lowest reading levels in the class.  But he loved to listen.  When I started reading chapter books to him (@ kindergarten), he would stay riveted for as long as I would read.  When he began reading chapter books (mid-year second grade) for himself, he started with the books we'd read aloud together.

Today Simon reads non-stop.  Of course, all the graphic novels he can get his hands on.  But just about anything else I bring home as well.  Nonetheless, Si loves it when I read to him.  He says it's great because I can always explain vocabulary and concepts to him as we go along.  He calls me the ultimate dictionary.

But he also says reading aloud is special because we get to spend time together... I'll take that any day.

Hopes & Dreams

At the beginning of every school year, I always spend the first few days with my fourth grade students discussing our hopes and dreams for the year. This idea is based on the Responsive Classroom approach to developing a positive learning environment with students. We read some books together (More Than Anything Else by Marie Bradby is one of my favorites for this!) and students think about the hopes and dreams that they have for the upcoming year. It is a great conversation for helping children to think about their goals and what actions will help to achieve them.

If you are joining us here and reading this post, hopefully it is because you are interested in taking on the challenge of starting a Reading Promise streak of your own. One of the first things to consider when creating a Reading Promise are the hopes and dreams of the members participating. Why are you embarking on this journey? Your ideas might be different from your child's ideas. That's ok! Discuss both! What do you hope to gain from this experience? Is this an opportunity to read more books, spend more time together, try out different genres, become better readers, discuss reading together more? When you envision yourself a month from now, six months from now, a year or more from now, what do you hope that you have accomplished? Ideally, think of how long you want to try to continue your streak. Alice and her father originally only planned on 100 days. Setting small, achievable goals will help to build confidence and enthusiasm.

Maybe you want to spend the first few days of your streak talking about this with your children, students, friends, etc. and reading books based around this theme. If you're looking for some ideas of books that match this idea, Responsive Classroom has a list of suggested books that they've found related to inspiring hopes and dreams. They also have a Hopes and Dreams Pinterest board devoted to the same topic. Check out their lists and see what you think. You may even have some ideas of your own. If you do, please share!!

Discussing your hopes and dreams related to the Reading Promise challenge will help you and your promise members to establish some goals. In turn, having some clear goals will help to keep you focused and on track with what your promise.

The hopes and dreams discussion also makes a great segue into giving children the some ownership in their learning to help create rules that will help them to achieve everyone's hopes and dreams (which, coincidentally, will be one of next steps in the Reading Promise process that we discuss).

What are your hopes and dreams for your Reading Promise? Share them with us! Can't wait to hear how these promises will inspire each of your families and classrooms.

Happy Reading!
Mrs. Hartman

Day 1: The Official Start to Our Streak

Today marks my family's official start to our personal Reading Promise reading streak. Unofficially, I've been reading to my son since before he was born this past March, but I figured now that I'm really kicking this Reading Promise Project into full gear, it's time to walk the walk and talk the talk at home and start keeping track of our reading experiences together.

I knew right from the start that reading was going to be an important part of his life. I'm a theme kind of girl, and I was stuck for months trying to figure out the best theme for my little bundle's nursery, until one day, it hit me. I love books. My husband loves books. I want my son to love books. Why not...books?!

Thanks to my parents (Love you, Mom & Dad!!), I have such fond memories of reading as a child and I hope to share those experiences with my son as he grows up. So, to begin his journey into life, I decorated his nursery with books in mind. My husband and I scoured used book stores for old favorites, then found cherished illustrations to frame and hang around his room. His stuffed animals are a collection of beloved children's book characters. He has a wide collection of books already, organized on the bookshelves in his room, and a special reading corner, complete with a tiny (adorable!) reading chair. Even his crib sheets feature The Very Hungry Caterpillar and Curious George! I love watching friends and family enter his room and reminisce or connect with a favorite illustration they find hanging on his walls.

Even though he's only five and a half months old, his first few months have already been filled with so many cherished moments together, centered around books. As a new mom, I had no clue what to do once I entered the world of mommyhood the day I brought him home from the hospital, but one of the first moments we shared together was our reading of I Love You Through and Through. At just 9 weeks old, he started to watch my face as I read How Do Dinosaurs Love Their Dogs to him while cuddled up in his rocking chair and smiled and cooed at me when I was finished. (My heart melted.) Just after he turned 3 months old, I watched him "turn the page" in Blueberries for Sal as we read. He's going to learn quickly that he can win me over easily by doing anything at all reading-related. It's my weakness...

I can't wait to watch so many more of these reading moments develop over our years together through our promise to read. Ok...deep breath...let our official reading streak...BEGIN!

Happy Reading!
Mrs. Hartman

The Beginning

This past spring, I found out about the book, The Reading Promise, by Alice Ozma from a colleague. I'm not even sure if she knows she was the catalyst behind my discovery of this book. She had added it to her online wishlist and her post had popped up on one of my social media feeds. As soon as I read the description on Amazon, I knew I had to read more. Just the brief summary reminded me of shared reading memories I experienced with my parents when I was younger. Reading and story telling always held a special place in my family. Within a day of receiving the book in the mail, I devoured it, consumed it, loved it.

There were so many things that I loved about this book. Being the ever-zealous teacher, as I was reading, my mind was spinning with thoughts of 'How can I recreate the enthusiasm and love for reading that this special father-daughter duo had with the families of my students?' I have so many cherished memories of reading as a child and the enthusiasm and passion I have for reading is something that I constantly try to instill in my fourth graders. After all, I believe that half the battle of getting your child to become a better reader is helping them to grow a love and appreciation for books. It is something I've already started to share with my recently-born son while reading to him in the special reading corner of his children's book-themed nursery. (Can you tell I'm a bit book crazy yet?)

Once I had finished The Reading Promise, I decided that I wanted to pass along Alice and her father's reading promise to the students at Sinking Springs Elementary. At first, I was thinking of a way to inspire my classroom of fourth graders to create reading promises, then I thought, 'Why stop with just my class, why not try to get as many families at our school to create reading promises of their own?' So after speaking with our principal, Mrs. Miller, and recruiting a few other equally enthusiastic colleagues, I decided to propose the idea of creating a school-wide parent/child book club for the 2012-2013 school year, based on the premise of Ozma's book, The Reading Promise.


It is my hope that by sharing this book with the families of Sinking Springs, along with strategies and activities for reading with children, I will be able to help inspire and educate families on how to start their own reading promises and streaks at home.

The purpose of this blog is to connect all of the families who decide to take on the challenge of the reading promise, and all of the visitors who pop in to check out our blog, so that parents and children can reflect on their experiences, share their successes and challenges, and above all, discuss great books with one another.

Happy Reading!
- Mrs. Hartman

The Reading Promise by Alice Ozma

When Alice was in fourth grade, she and her father-- a beloved elementary school librarian-- made a promise to read aloud together for 100 consecutive nights. Upon reaching their goal, they celebrated over pancakes, but it was clear that neither wanted to let go of what had become their reading ritual. They decided to continue what they came to call "The Streak" for as long as they possibly could.

From Frank L. Baum to Dickens to J.K. Rowling to Shakespeare, Alice's father read to her every night without fail until they day she entered college, a remarkable eight years later. In this deeply affecting memoir, Alice tells the story of her relationship with the extraordinary man who raised her. From her dad's steadying hand on the back of her wobbly bike to his one-man crusade to keep reading in schools, Alice weaves a series of deftly written, often hilarious vignettes about the words they shared and the spaces in between.
           - Summary from the back of The Reading Promise

This book was a bestseller for The LA Times, Barnes and Noble, American Booksellers’ Association, and IndieBound. It was in the Amazon Top 5 Movers and Shakers and cracked the top 100 books. GoodReads.com voters said it was one of the top five  memoirs/autobiographies of the year. It has been featured on The CBS Evening News with Katie Couric, CBS Sunday Morning,  NPR’s Weekend Edition with Scott Simon, Fox and Friends, The Today Show, and in publications ranging from The Washington Post to Wired to Marie Claire.

For more information about this book, visit The Reading Promise's website (where some of this information is from) to read more about the book, the author, and book suggestions for starting your own streak.