FAQ
Q. How long is this year's program?
Reading is Cool runs from October through March. Teachers begin tracking reading on October 1st, with the first report (October) due by November 7th. The last report (March) will be due by April 7th.
Q. When and how do I submit my monthly report?
All monthly reports and Top Reader of the Year reports must be submitted online. Please select Tracking & Reporting from the Reading Is Cool home page. Teachers can enter any report at any time, but to qualify for Top Classrooms of the Month visits from S.J. Sharkie, the following reporting deadlines apply:
Report - Due Date
October - November 1-7
November - December 1-7
December - January 1-9
January - February 1-7
Top Reader Nomination - February
February - March 1-7
March - April 1-7
Please note that the name of the Top Reader will need to be submitted before the conclusion of the school year in order to select winners for the Top Reader Night in March. Though you may wait to give your MVP Reader puck and All-Star Reader medals out when the program is fully completed at the end of April, Top Reader Night must occur before then to coincide with the conclusion of the San Jose Sharks regular season.
Q. When and how does my class receive their materials?
Paper materials will be mailed to each classroom at the start of the program. These include:
- Bookmarks
- Certificates of Achievement
- All-Star Reader and Tracking poster
- Promotional poster for the classroom
- Six All-Star Reader Medals
- One MVP Reader Puck
Additional resources can be found on the Resource Material page.
Q. Why track number of pages instead of books?
Within grades the reading levels of students can be vastly different, and some students may read many short books while others are reading a fewer number of longer books. Because we need a method for awarding S.J. Sharkie's Top Classrooms of the Month visits, we believe number of pages provides the greatest parity.
Q. What about pages that are read to them?
The goal is to get students to read more books and to improve their reading level. You should count all pages that students read, but please only count each page once. K-2nd Grade students may count pages that are read to them, and 3rd-5th Grade students may count easy pages that they read to a sibling or younger child. Making sure that each student is reading at the appropriate level is up to the teacher and parents.
Q. Do the All-Star Reader and year-end MVP Reader have to be the student that read the most pages?
While many teachers may award these based on the number of pages read, this may cause the same student to win each month and other students who are working very hard may lose their desire to participate, believing they will never win. For this reason, we encourage teachers to consider other criteria for All-Star Readers, such as greatest improvement, most effort shown etc. Ultimately the choice is left to each teacher to make the program work for their class.
Q. How do I nominate a student for Top Reader Night?
During the month of February, all teachers will be emailed a form to fill out to nominate a student for Top Reader Night. Teachers may only nominate one student from their class.
Q. What do I do if I have two students tie for the monthly award?
Our Resource Material page contains an assortment of certificates that teachers can use to recognize the hard work their students put into the program every month. However, we can only accept one Top Reader of the Month per classroom for the Reading is Cool website.
Q. When are monthly awards distributed?
Individual student awards (medal or printable certificate) are awarded by the teacher at the end of the month, once pages have been totaled. Additional certificate options are available on the Reading Is Cool website and can be distributed at the teacher's discretion. Reward visits by S.J. Sharkie will occur the month after reports are submitted (i.e. October's Top Classrooms will receive visits in November, etc.). Top Classrooms outside of Santa Clara county will receive a digital classroom visit from S.J. Sharkie.
Q. How do you determine the Top Classrooms of the Month? How will my fifth grade classroom win if my students have to read as many pages as a first grade class?
Each month S.J. Sharkie will make his Top Classrooms of the Month visits to the classroom from each grade that has read the most number of pages per student (based on information provided in the monthly reports). Also, because we hope to spread the joy of visiting as many classrooms as possible, each class is only able to win one digital visit from S.J. Sharkie in a given year. However, classes will only be considered for this award if a total has actually been submitted for that month.
Q. How can we find out who is winning the monthly classroom awards?
Monthly classroom winners are listed on the Top Classroom of the Month page on our website shortly after monthly reports are due.
Q. What is the contact information for Reading Is Cool?
We can be reached via the following:
[email protected]