Read a book, win a bike: Elementary students like that idea

Some hard-working students at the St. Jean Elementary School in Charlottetown got some new wheels on Wednesday.

Or rather, some hard-reading students. They were part of a project called Bikes for Books, a competition to encourage reading.

It was sponsored by the Prince of Wales Masonic Lodge No. 18, and kids were asked to read as many books as they could.

If they demonstrated comprehension of each book, they could fill out a ballot and their name would go in a draw for a new bike and a safety helmet. The more books read, the more chances for a bike.

Grade 6 student Jayden Gorrill read several volumes of her favourite ghost story series, Haunted Canada, which she said always keeps her guessing.

"Some of them have bad endings, some of them have good, but you never know what to expect," she said. "Books like Little Red Riding Hood, there's movies for that, and you've probably seen what happens at the end. But this, they don't have movies for."

The program was a big success, said teachers, with ballot jars filled in each class.

One boys and one girls bike and helmet were given out to lucky winners from each grade. Thursday, more winners will be chosen from the other school in the program, Mount Stewart Consolidated.

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