Innovation, Inspiration, and Impact.

“Reading gives us some place to go when we have to stay where we are.”

Mason Cooley

Jill Bourne, librarian at Challenger Intermediate School, has elevated the library by bringing in Playaways. A Playaway is a handheld electronic device, battery operated with headphones, that allows for a book to be heard. A student can check out a Playaway and they receive the physical copy of the book as well, so they can follow along.

Jill mentioned how the excitement has grown in the library. She said the Playaway is great because it can introduce students to different accents with the characters as well as students often ketch on to more of the book when they hear it while they are reading it.

Henry Crandall, 5^th grade student at Challenger, said “Reading is great because it describes something and then you get to make up what it looks like in your head. My favorite thing about the Playaway is that it helps my AR points go up.”

Playaways are a terrific alternative to a screen and allow for readers of all levels to enjoy. Teachers are finding them valuable to hook into a speaker and play in their classroom for all to hear.

Without being funded by the Goddard Education Foundation, Jill wouldn’t have had the opportunity to pick out the specific books she wanted for her 5^th and 6^th grade audience at Challenger. Thank you to all the donors that contributed to expanding the Library.