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NABC Programs
Ticket to Reading Rewards
Program Description
This innovative program designed by the National Association of Basketball Coaches Foundation strives to encourage elementary school students to read independently. It does so by rewarding young people with basketball-related incentives based on the number of books they read during the college basketball season. By focusing the excitement of the game on independent reading, the TICKET TO READING REWARDS program promises to become an important tool for teachers who want to support their students' efforts to read more books.
Each school system can adapt the TICKET TO READING REWARDS program to meet its specific needs and requirements. Chicago Public Schools, the first school system in the nation to implement the program, has elected to introduce the program to approximately 30,000 sixth, seventh and eighth graders at 200 schools. These students will receive the following incentives based on the numbers of books they read:
Students must read books at their individual reading levels outside of classroom assignments. Each time a student reads a book, he or she will report the name of the book to the teacher, who will both verify that the student successfully read the book for understanding and also stamp the TICKET TO READING REWARDS Classroom Poster next to the student's name. As the students reach the levels above, they will be given the corresponding rewards at each of four "Rally Days" during the basketball season.
In addition to the rewards listed above, every participating school has an official sized Nike basketball - autographed by NABC Foundation president and Duke University Men's Basketball Coach Mike Krzyzewski - to award to the student who reads the most books in each of the participating schools.
Ariel Mutual Funds and Bank One have sponsored the TICKET TO READING REWARDS Program in Chicago. In addition, several individuals have made personal gifts to the NABC Foundation to assist in supporting the program. As Coach Mike Krzyewski noted, "Like the game of basketball, the TICKET TO READING REWARDS Program is truly a team effort. From the leadership and teachers of the Chicago Public Schools, to the area college coaches, to the corporate sponsors and donors, the NABC staff and most importantly, to the kids who will work hard to increase the number of books they read - all of us have a part on the team."
Sponsors
ARIEL CAPITAL MANAGEMENT, INC. is a Chicago-based money management firm with nearly $10 billion in assets under management. In addition to managing separate accounts for institutional clients, the company serves individual investors and corporate 401(k) plans with the no-load Ariel Mutual Funds. It can be found on the Internet at http://www.arielmutualfunds.com.
BANK ONE CORPORATION (NYSE: ONE) is the nation's fifth-largest bank holding company, with assets of more than $270 billion. Bank One offers a full range of financial services to commercial and business customers and consumers. It can be found on the Internet at http://www.bankone.com.
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