Raptors 905 Summer Reading Challenge

First Book Canada is inviting Grade 5 students to a virtual Summer Reading Challenge, run with Raptors 905, Penguin Random House Canada, and Tangerine Bank

Students currently in grade 4, 5, or 6 in elementary schools across Canada can take on the challenge to read 5 books over 5 weeks for a total of 905 minutes of reading this summer!

Each week you can follow along at our virtual meetings to discuss the books with the authors themselves and other special guests!

All 5 books focus on BIPOC representation and social justice, to encourage students to read books that reflect and are inclusive of all voices, stories, and experiences. 

Reading begins July 9th and will run until August 14th, 2021. Are you ready to take the challenge?

 

Participants will be required to obtain their own copies of the 5 titles to follow along with the Summer Reading Challenge. 

I Will Accept the Challenge!
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Check out the line-up of books selected by Penguin Random House Canada!
Week 1 - Take Back the Block
Exploring community, gentrification, justice, and friendship, Take Back the Block introduces an irresistible 6th grader and asks what it means to belong--to a place and a movement--and to fight for what you believe in
Week 2- The Barren Grounds
Narnia meets traditional Indigenous stories of the sky and constellations in an epic middle grade fantasy series from award-winning author David Robertson.
Week 3 - J.D. and the Great Barber Battle
Eight-year-old J.D. turns a tragic home haircut into a thriving barber business in this hilarious new illustrated chapter book series.
Week 4 - Where Stars are Scattered
Heartbreak, hope, and gentle humor exist together in this graphic novel about a childhood spent waiting, and a young man who is able to create a sense of family and home in the most difficult of settings. It's an intimate look at the daily life of a refugee.
Week 5 - The Watsons to go Birmingham- 1963
When the Watson family—ten-year-old Kenny, Momma, Dad, little sister Joetta, and brother Byron—sets out on a trip south to visit Grandma in Birmingham, Alabama, they don’t realize that they’re heading toward one of the darkest moments in America’s history.
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This was a very commendable effort by Raptors 905 and First Book Canada, we enjoyed it immensely and the whole process was smooth, summer time made even better, perfect mix of off-screen time, enjoyment and improvement in reading skills!

Nida A., Parent
We can't do it without the help of these organizations
Penguin Random House Canada
Raptors 905
Tangerine
Compugen
Reading Challenge in the Media
Raptors 905 challenge kids to hit the books
905 minutes of reading in five weeks. Are you up to that challenge? A few hundred elementary school kids are. And they are being coached by one of the best. Listen for more on the Raptors 905 Reading Challenge.
Listen to Interview from Metro Morning
Raptors 905 summer reading challenge invites Peel students to read books by BIPOC authors
Participants are invited to read one book a week for five weeks.
Read Story from CBC Books
Read for 905 Minutes with Raptors 905
Raptors 905 Summer Reading Challenge - The Raptors 905 and Head Coach Patrick Mutombo is challenging kids to read 5 books in 5 weeks for 905 minutes of reading.
Watch story from CP24
Raptors 905 book club encourages Ontario students to keep reading this summer
It’s been a summer full of books for Grade 5 students Muhammad, Dawoud and Trusten—thanks to a reading challenge from the Raptors 905.
Read story from CTV