Winter Reading

Winter Reading started yesterday!  The system I work for has always done Winter Reading for kids, and last year I decided that teens should do it too.  This program doesn't get nearly the participation that Summer Reading does, and that's fine.  It's a chance to have some fun and give out some prizes.  I've found that teens prefer a chance at a super awesome prize to definitely getting some small crappy thing, so Winter Reading gives them a chance at one of 4 really awesome prizes.  Last year they got an entry into whichever drawing they chose for each hour they read.  This year I'm trying out a BINGO sheet at the urging of my Teen Advisory Council.  I tried to make it easy and fun and a little weird.  There are 3 different sheets at the moment, but I might make one or two more as the program goes on (they've got until the end of March).  They get one drawing entry for each BINGO they get, and they can enter as many times as they want.  I tried to make sure the sheets had a few squares that encouraged them to poke around the website and facebook page, talk to random librarians, email me, and come to programs.  Here's the front and back of one of the sheets:

Other sheets encourage emailing me the best joke you know, reading a book from a list of my favorites, reading in public, and other random things.  I gave them out to the teens at book club yesterday, and they thought they were funny. Mission accomplished!

I made three great prize bundles based on specific themes that I know my teens are into, and also gave a CASH option for the teens who aren't as nerdy/awesome as the ones I interact with most often.  Here's the prize poster:

I can't wait to see which one is the most popular.  Last year it was The Hunger Games themed prize by a landslide,  but my teens have informed me that they are way over it, so I skipped it this time.  I was a little bummed I couldn't get a signed copy of TFiOS, but there's no way I'm giving mine up! (It's signed AND hanklerfished!)

I am extremely lucky in my funding (thanks, FotL!), but this could easily be adapted for a smaller budget.  Teens will do anything for candy or cash.