Global Reading Challenge
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Three Thousand Cheers for Reading: Global Reading Challenge 2026 in the Books
On Tuesday, March 31, with an electric crowd cheering at every opportunity, a team of fourth graders from John Stanford International School became the 31st Global Reading Challenge city champions. With a sweet team name — the Global Bananana Pancake Group — the Stanford students scored a whopping 115 out of 120 points. They were… Continue reading
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Impact Story: When a Children’s Author Comes to Town
The benefits of reading for kids are well-known: literacy, language skills, empathy. But on a winter morning at Seattle’s John Rogers Elementary, a group of 40 fourth and fifth grade readers are showing something else: pure, unadulterated excitement. The students are crowded on the floor of the school library for a talk from Ernesto Cisneros,… Continue reading
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Book Buzz: 2026 Global Reading Challenge Books
Across Seattle, fourth and fifth graders are getting excited about books — specifically, eight books that range from a story about a 10-year-old sock detective to a graphic novel about an all-girls, hijab-wearing basketball team. This year’s Global Reading Challenge books have been selected! The Global Reading Challenge is a 31-year-old reading incentive program that’s… Continue reading
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Building Literacy and Reading Joy for 30 years: the Global Reading Challenge
On Wednesday, April 2, after 60 tense minutes of competition in front of a cheering crowd in the Central Library auditorium, The Library Lynx team from Queen Anne Elementary won the title of 2025 Global Reading Challenge city champion. Wearing orange headbands and purple T-shirts, the seven fourth and fifth graders competed against 10 other… Continue reading
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Paging All Kids: Global Reading Challenge Books Announced
Fourth and fifth graders around Seattle are buzzing with book news: The Library has just unveiled the Global Reading Challenge books for 2024-25 on our website at www.spl.org/GlobalReadingChallenge. For those new to the program, the Global Reading Challenge, now in its 30th year, is a reading incentive program for fourth and fifth graders enrolled in… Continue reading
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Reading Widely, Cheering Wildly: Global Reading Challenge City Finals Recap
Ten was the magic number for Loyal Heights Elementary’s The Sparky Beavers at the Global Reading Challenge citywide finals on Tuesday, March 26, at the Central Library. That’s how many tiebreaker rounds it took for this team of fourth and fifth graders to eliminate eight other finalist teams and become the 2024 Global Reading Challenge… Continue reading
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Read All About It! The 8 Great Titles for the 2024 Global Reading Challenge
The Seattle Public Library’s 2024 Global Reading Challenge books tell stories about many things, including a Navajo water monster, a magic button, and a rescue Chihuahua with a destiny to rule the world. Now in its 29th year, the Global Reading Challenge is a reading incentive program between the Library and Seattle Public Schools (SPS). Fourth… Continue reading
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Let’s Read! The 8 Great Books of the 2023 Global Reading Challenge
Hey fourth and fifth graders, are you ready to read, learn and win? The 2023 Global Reading Challenge launches today, with the unveiling of this year’s books. Now in its 28th year, the Global Reading Challenge is a reading incentive program between the Library and Seattle Public Schools (SPS). Fourth and fifth graders enrolled in… Continue reading