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    This Utah School Uses A Book Vending Machine To Get Kids To Read

    How Granger Elementary School in West Valley City, UT installed a book-dispensing vending machine to get kids excited about literacy.

    laurenkayweber
    by laurenkayweber

    Community Contributor

    Getting Kids Excited About Books

    Granger Elementary PTA / Via grangerelpta.com

    In this day and age, kids tend to be more excited about video games and their phones than they are about reading. Granger Elementary School is trying something new to build excitement about reading in their K-6 students: a book-dispensing vending machine. Students earn and keep their selected book forever, free of charge.

    Kids Earn Books Through Logging Reading Minutes

    Granger Elementary PTA / Via grangerelpta.com

    The Bookworm Vending Machine doesn't accept money. Students earn "Inchy the Bookworm" golden tokens redeemable for any book stocked in the machine. All students in the school are encouraged to log their independent reading minutes in the school-wide Road to Success program. The top readers from each grade earn tokens for the machine.

    Book Choice Matters in Independent Reading

    Granger Elementary PTA / Via grangerelpta.com

    The Bookworm Vending Machine holds 200-300 books fully stocked. The school ensures that the machine is stocked with books across all lexiles represented at the school, but students are not required to choose books on their reading level. Research shows that the majority of kids agree their favorite books are the ones that they have picked out themselves; nearly 9 in 10 say that they are more likely to finish a book that they picked out themselves.

    The Vending Machine is Bringing the Community Together

    Granger Elementary PTA / Via grangerelpta.com

    Global Vending Group, maker of the Bookworm Vending Machine, attended the ribbon cutting for the machine in May. Scholastic brought Clifford the Big Red Dog to help Granger Elementary School celebrate unveiling their new machine. The result was a unique celebration of literacy that left students and their families excited to read.

    Already Making an Impact

    Granger Elementary PTA / Via grangerelpta.com

    The week following the ribbon cutting, one parent of a second grader at Granger Elementary School said, "My son is so excited about the vending machine! He already told me that he wants to read more at home so he can be a top reader and earn his token to use the machine."

    Granger Elementary PTA / Via grangerelpta.com
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