Launching the #readwoke challenge with Chipotle Rewards

I was super inspired last week when I came across the SLJ article by Cicely Lewis called "'Read Woke’ School Reading Challenge Makes an Impact." According to the author, Read Woke is "a feeling. A form of education. A call to action, and our right as lifelong learners. It means arming yourself with knowledge to better protect your rights. Learning about others so you treat people with respect and dignity, no matter their religion, race, creed, or color." 

 Side note: In thinking about the #readwoke challenge, I did a bunch of reading on the word #woke. I wanted to make sure I knew what I was talking about and that I understood the origins of the term. I think these two articles were especially enlightening: "What Does 'Woke' Mean? There's More To The Slang Term Than You Think" from Bustle and the NYT article "Earning the 'Woke' Badge." I hope when I share the challenge with students that we're able to explore the evolution of the word  and how it's used today... (MTV declared "woke" one of the "10 words you should know in 2016," so I'm interested to see what my kids currently understand). 

And back to the main post: We've been working hard to push the Read Without Walls concept, which I think shares some similarities with Read Woke. If I get a little metaphorical, I think Read Woke is the more action-orientated, sophisticated older sibling of Read Without Walls. 

 The Read Woke concept is a really great direction for our spring reading challenge in the junior high. I applied for Chipotle's Reading Rewards program (check it out here) and have 400 BOGO entree coupons to use for reading incentives. 


I also think it's a great time to run with Read Woke because of the current focus on student activism -- Read Woke promotes books that get students fired up about injustices in their world. 

 The #readwoke Challenge at My Junior High

 I'll be promoting the Read Woke challenge in our 8th and 9th grade social studies classes. I think this is a natural fit because of its connections to social justice.

 To participate in the challenge, students will be asked to pick a #readwoke book -- I went through my catalog and found at least 50 titles that I think fit Cicely Lewis' criteria (some are a more perfect fit than others, but I think they all come pretty close. Here's my list if you want to check out titles). Ms. Lewis says Read Woke books should:
  • Challenge a social norm
  • Give voice to the voiceless
  • Provide information about a group that has been disenfranchised
  • Seek to challenge the status quo
  • Have a protagonist from an underrepresented or oppressed group
Once students have read the book, they will complete the mini poster below to earn the Chipotle reward. I plan to use the posters for a bulletin board display at the end of the year. Here's a link to a high res PDF of the file -- feel free to use and modify.  

Are you going to promote Read Woke? What are your strategies?

Comments

  1. Kristin WestJuly 10, 2018 at 5:47 PM

    Lindsay, I am SO impressed and inspired by your Reading Woke program and the one started by Cicely Lewis. Thanks a lot for sharing your reading lists and your awesome PDF form! I am paying attention, taking notes, and gathering ideas on implementing this reading program. I am starting a K-12 librarian job in MS, and I think introducing this program would really help increase reading and literacy for students. Thanks again!

    ReplyDelete
  2. UnknownNovember 14, 2019 at 5:52 AM

    Thank you for your book list! I am looking to see if we have some of these books.

    ReplyDelete

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