The Race to Read is On

Feb. 1st marks the beginning of MN’s second Mustang Reading Challenge. It’s back and better than ever. Librarian Noel Weigel teamed up with the Book Club President junior Megan Jenkins, in order to improve the Mustang Reading Challenge. With the help of Book Club, the challenge has been improved in many ways. And since the challenge is now improved, students will have an easier time in bettering themselves through their reading.

Whether it’s for English class or for leisure, students are constantly reading. However, there are some that have yet to find the beauty in reading. For this reason Weigel came up with the Mustang Reading Challenge during the 2014-2015 school year. With the challenge comes a list of various book categories for a student to pick from, thus helping students find what they are interested in.

Advancements have been made as to how a student registers their books into the challenge. Instead of logging into a computer and signing up online, students can now scan a barcode and register on their phones.

Another improvement is being made with the new rules, making the contest more fair than last year. Prior to this year, any book chosen counted as a point, but this year it’s all about the number of pages in each book. The challenge has also been opened up to every teacher in the building.

“Every teacher, regardless of subject they teach, can participate in the challenge! I’m really excited but it’s going to be hard going to each of my classes and possibly competing against the teacher,” Jenkins said.

With the challenge becoming more competitive, last years top teachers have come up with different ways of getting their students to read more in their free time. Some teachers offer food days, candy, or other small prizes.

English Teacher Rebecca Terrell, who placed third in last year’s Mustang Reading challenge, has a special gift that her opponents do not possess, giving her a little lead over them.

“I have my Masters in Library Sciences, meaning I know a lot about books. So if I have a student who is unsure of what to read I can easily help them find a book,” Terrell said.

With the challenge turning into a battle, students have a fun way to get into reading. There are many hidden benefits to reading, besides getting your favorite teacher one step closer to winning the Mustang Reading Challenge.

“Reading increases vocabulary, communication ability, and learning ability,” Weigel said.

Although the competition part of the challenge is exciting, the real goal is for students to read more. By combining fun and education, students have many reasons to join the Mustang Reading Challenge.