Sparking Students’ Interest in Reading.

Jennifer Stevens, 6th Grade English Language Arts and Social Studies Teacher at Central Middle School in Cape Girardeau, MO has always been on the lookout for new classroom tools that can boost student engagement and interest in learning. One day, while reading an article on We Are Teachers, she came across Read to Lead, since then – reading has never looked the same in her class. 

The challenge was sparking students’ interest …

Like many teachers, Jennifer was looking for ways to get students interested in reading in both her Home Room Class as well as her English Language Arts Class. Jennifer shared, “I am always on the lookout for new resources and tech tools to give students different pathways to learning.” 

Then she found Read to Lead.

After some initial research, Jennifer decided to create a free Read to Lead account and give it a whirl! “I gave very little directions to my students. When it comes to technology, I just let them dive right in. They learn by doing – it was very easy to get started.” One day after school Jennifer created a class on Read to Lead, uploaded her roster, and assigned students their first game. The next day they were ready to go. 

Read to Lead was a natural extension to her existing curriculum.

Once the students started using Read to Lead, it quickly became a part of her supplemental instruction.

 “The most surprising thing about Read to Lead is that the kids actually liked it – they were reading and were engaged. That’s hard to do with 6th graders!” 

In her students’ words:

“I like that you get to make real-world decisions in the game. You’re reading passages, communicating with the characters, and making decisions like you would in a real day.” 

“Read to Lead has improved my reading. I used to get 60’s and 75’s on my Achieve3,000 quizzes, but now my scores keep getting higher and higher. The more I play Read to Lead, the better I’m doing.” 

One of Jennifer’s classes read over 1 million words together over the course of the school year and has joined the Read to Lead Millionaires Club. They have received their student prize packs in the mail along with a gift card to host a class celebration hosted by Read to Lead’s generous donors. Thank you Jennifer for your commitment to help your students build their reading and leading skills, we’re inspired by your class!