Jalon Fennell wins Amazon gift card in Cross County Reading Challenge

George L. Cooke Elementary School student Jalon Fennell poses with the Amazon gift card that he won by participating in the Cross County Reading Challenge

Students across Sullivan County are virtually reading their way through the county, thanks to an initiative from the School Library System at Sullivan BOCES. (SLSSB)

In an effort to create a culture of reading across Sullivan County, the SLSSB created the “Cross County Reading Challenge.” Each school district has a “team” of participating students. Whenever a student completes a book, he or she can log it on the challenge’s website and watch his or her team’s “flag” push forward on the digital map with each book completed. When students share a book with their friend, or when two students on the same team read the same book, the team receives an additional entry.

As an additional incentive, the SLSSB randomly draws students each month to win an Amazon gift card. This month, Cooke Elementary School student Jalon Fennell was one of the lucky winners – and if his ear-to-ear grin is any indication, he’s got some great reading plans for his gift card. Congrats, Jalon!