Reading is not only fun, but a crucial life skill—and a winter challenge aims to prove it.

Erik Chalhoub here, remembering how excited I was to participate in my library’s summer reading program every year through elementary school. Granted, I probably only did it for the promise of prizes—I won two bikes from Kmart, after all—but I learned a valuable lesson: reading can be fun.

During my childhood, there wasn’t a similar program happening during the winter break. So, the kid in me got excited to learn about the launch of the Read for All Literacy Challenge happening this winter in Monterey County.

Throughout winter break, students and their families are tasked with completing 12 challenges using a bookmark and tracking their progress online. These include reading aloud for 15 minutes, reading to a friend (human or otherwise), reading a food label and more.

It’s open to students from fourth to sixth grade, and students who complete challenges will raise points for their classes. And yes, there will be rewards.

The goal is to make reading fun for children and their families, says Jason Little, executive director of the Read to Me Project, the nonprofit organizing the challenge. It’s part of the Literacy for All campaign launched last week, aiming to expand early literacy access across Monterey County.

“Literacy is not just an education issue—it’s a community responsibility,” Little said. “We want every child in Monterey County to enter kindergarten confident, curious and ready to learn.”

Read to Me Project launched in 2011 with the mission to encourage students to read to their younger siblings, providing them with books in their classrooms to take home. It stresses the importance of reading out loud to a child, noting that 85 percent of brain development happens before age 5.

A 2019 study by an independent research firm found that Greenfield Union School District students participating in the Read to Me Project showed improvement in their literacy and reading scores compared to those who did not.

Still, Monterey County students continue to lag behind in their reading skills. According to the California Department of Education, only 28.1 percent of third-graders in the county were reading at grade level for the 2023-2024 school year, compared to 42.8 percent across the state. For fifth-graders in the county, only 34.2 percent were considered proficient in English/language arts.

Reading challenge materials are available at participating schools and other locations. With many schools already on winter break, and most beginning Dec. 22, it’s time to get reading.