http://www.scholastic.com/summer

The Scholastic Summer Challenge is a free, online program dedicated to stopping the "Summer Slide," the learning skill losses students accumulate over the summer which research shows can be curbed by reading during summer months.  To that end, the Summer Challenge keeps kids motivated to read every day and break the reading world record.  For 17 weeks the Summer Challenge allows kids to log their reading minutes, earn weekly virtual prizes for reaching minute goals, use an interactive map to keep track of how their school is doing in the competition to break the world record, and more.  The site was designed to be fun, user- and kid-friendly.  In just 12 weeks kids broke last year's world record of 64,213,141 minutes read, and site analytics reports show a 200% increase in traffic.

Plus the site is a resource for parents and educators.  Parents can receive email alerts, find expert tips, download summer booklists, and discover ways to use the Summer Challenge at home. Teachers can bulk register students for easy use, track student progress with their dashboard and find tips on how to integrate the program into their classrooms.

• Kyle Good, Scholastic Inc., Senior Vice President, Department Head

• Sara Sinek, Scholastic Inc., Senior Director, Project Lead

• Megan Kaesshaefer, Scholastic Inc., Digital Communications Producer, Producer

• Anne Sparkman, Scholastic Inc., Manager Content & Special Projects, Project Manager

• Nadia Almahdi, Scholastic Inc., Junior Publicist, Outreach

• Lia Zneimer, Scholastic Inc., Junior Publicist, Outreach