More than 16,000 children and young people across Victoria, including Maribyrnong and Hobsons Bay, have set a new reading record in this year’s Big Summer Read.
Public Libraries in Victoria are celebrating a 40 per cent increase in the number of kids registered in this year’s challenge.
More than 218,000 books were read over the recent school holidays, which is a 63 per cent increase on last summer.
Local Government Minister Melissa Horne said reading is one of the most vital skills for kids to learn.
“We’re proud to support the Big Summer Read to encourage more reading in the summer school holidays,” she said.
“We love our public libraries, and through our investment in the Living Libraries Infrastructure Program, we are building facilities that meet the needs of all Victorians.”
The Big Summer Read is held from December 1 to January 31 each year and aims to prevent a decrease in kids’ reading during school holidays.
The government’s reading challenge is set to complement this effort by encouraging children and students to read books over the year and record their efforts online. Since it began in 2005, more than 4.3 million students have read over 60 million books.
