YOUR NEWS

The Reading World Cup

It wasn’t what you expect on a Tuesday evening – 120 12-13 year olds huddled around the café tables, alternately whispering secretively and clapping, banging on tables and punching the air triumphantly, cheered on for 3 hours by the crowd of assorted teachers, librarians and parents. But this was no ordinary evening for Newcastle Central Library, as they were hosts to the first ever Kids’ Lit Quiz. The Quiz was brought to the UK from New Zealand by it’s charismatic quiz master, Wayne Mills, book crusader and maverick, who, resplendent in top hat and purple T-shirt, led the enthusiastic book masterminds from all over the North East through a pub-quiz style challenge. The one hundred themed questions covered a mind-blowing range of genres and themes from primates to Harry Potter to Dr Seuss, mixed with soundtracks from books into movies. Wayne read aloud tantalising extracts and recommended his own favourites as he went; he handed out on-the-spot cash prizes from his seemingly bottomless pockets and piles of brand new books to the highest scoring teams at the end of each round.

The Kids’ Lit Quiz is an annual event in New Zealand, now in it’s eleventh year, which allows a staggering 95% of schools and tens of thousands of children to exercise their book brains in countless regional heats to win coveted places at the national, televised final which attracts huge audiences. Public Libraries, bookshops and schools are flooded with publicity and work together to promote reading in the run up.

The North East event drew in schools from widely disparate catchment areas – all hopeful of winning not just £100 each, but the chance to compete in the glitzy final and an all-expenses-paid trip-of-a-lifetime to New Zealand. In fact the winners triumphed with a score higher than ever achieved by the Kiwis!

Reading for pleasure remains largely a solitary, unsung activity but that magical night in Newcastle proved it doesn’t have to be that way. The Kids’ Lit Quiz is a highly effective means of celebrating and sharing reading and more importantly recognising the achievements of readers – traditionally overlooked in the more readily visible sporting or musical cultures in schools.

The Kids’ Lit Quiz sparked off the setting up of reading groups, interclass competitions for team selection and new partnerships between teachers and librarians to enthuse and develop readers through the weeks of practice and preparation. Teachers and librarians alike were full of praise for the event – if a little shamed faced that their students fared far better than they did!!

Wayne Mills too believes that the success of the Quiz in Newcastle proves that the idea of reading as a sport has great potential outside his own country. Establishing a national Quiz in the UK will take him one step nearer his dream of making kids who enjoy reading part of a global community of readers, competing in New Zealand, the UK and eventually the USA and Australia too.

Here are some of the comments about the Kids’ Lit Quiz:

“I was thrilled to be part of it and share the kids’ excitement on the night”

“The kids loved it – realising they could compete against other reading groups gave them a real boost. They’re telling all their friends about it and aren’t embarrassed to enjoy books”

“We’ve had so much support, congratulations and praise from parents. It’s got to be an annual event”

“It makes a difference to my work as a teacher – I’m reading more widely and find myself recommending books far more”

“It generated a fantastic enthusiasm for books and reading – we need more of it and I want to keep the momentum going till next year”

“OFSTED came while we were preparing for the Quiz – it got a mention as a strength in the report!”

“It really raised the profile of reading and library use – especially among boys”

“Definitely worth promoting as a cool-to-read carrot!”

For more information please contact:

Eileen Armstrong
Cramlington High School, Cramlington, Northumberland NE23 6BN

Tel: 01670 712311

Email: earmstrong@cchs.northumbria.sch.uk