Parents and guardians
A letter from the Premier
Dear Parent/Guardian
I am writing to invite your child to participate in the 2008 Victorian Premier’s Reading Challenge.
For the past three years, the Premier of Victoria has invited students to take up a challenge to improve their reading skills and to discover the joy and wonder that can be found in books.
This year it is my pleasure to again challenge students from Prep to Year 9 to read more and to read more widely. I am also delighted to extend the invitation to students in Year 10.
Students in Prep to Year 2 are challenged to read or ‘experience’ 30 books and students in Years 3 to 10 are challenged to read 15 books by 31 August 2008. If children are just learning to read, you can help them to ‘experience’ books by reading to or with them and talking about the story, text and pictures.
As children develop their reading skills, you can encourage them to try different types of books. The Reading Challenge booklists contain almost 5,000 titles and include fiction, non-fiction, plays, poetry, short stories and graphic/cartoon novels. This year you can search the booklist with your child to find books by categories such as adventure, fantasy and history.
A new booklist has been prepared for students in Years 9 and 10. This list of books is for mature readers and includes a range of young adult titles from which you and your child can choose appropriate reading material. The books on this list are diverse in style and contain a broad range of themes and ideas. They reflect the reading habits and choices made by many young adolescents. The inclusion of a book on this list does not mean it is a recommended text for all students.
For more information about the Challenge, visit the pages of this website or contact your child’s school.
In Term 4 I will be awarding certificates to celebrate the achievements of all students who successfully complete the Reading Challenge.
I encourage you to support your children with the Challenge by assisting them to select appropriate books, reading with them and talking with them about books. I look forward to working in partnership with you to promote a lifelong love of reading in our children.
Yours sincerely
John Brumby
PREMIER OF VICTORIA
Premier's letter
The letter from the Premier (PDF - 1.9Mb) inviting participation in the 2008 Challenge is available for download. You will need the Adobe Acrobat Reader to view these files.
The letter is also available in portable document format in the following languages:
Consent form (for school based students)
Consent is required for a student to participate in the Challenge.
Parents must sign Section 1 of the Consent form (Word - 31Kb) to participate in the Challenge.
Parents must sign Section 2 of the Consent form for the names of successful Challengers to be published in the Premier's Reading Challenge Honour Roll.
The consent form is also available as a portable document format in the following languages:
Home-schooled students
Home-based reader registrations closed on 27 June 2008. Student registrations can no longer be accepted for the 2008 Challenge. In 2009 students who are home-schooled will again be invited to participate in the Challenge.
Choosing books for children
Booklets providing suggestions for books for children in the Early Years and Middle Years of schooling are available for download.
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