Joliet District 86 kicks off One District, One Book reading campaign

Joliet Public Schools District 86 recently launched the second year of a districtwide Joliet Reads One District, One Book reading campaign.

All District 86 preschool and elementary students received their own copy of the book “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” by Roald Dahl. Books were available in both English and Spanish, according to a news release from the district.

The students also received a bookmark with a daily reading schedule and a QR code with a link to videos of District 86 employees, community members and school board members reading chapters of the book, according to the district.

Community members include Will County Executive Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant; state Sen. Meg Loughran Cappel; Joliet police officer Church Mascolino; and District 86 board of school inspectors members Matthew Pritz, Jesse Smith and Delia Ulloa-Jimenez.

“We are thrilled to continue this districtwide reading event,” District 86 Superintendent Theresa Rouse said in the release. “Thank you to our community partners who helped read chapters this year.”

“Any time we get students excited to read is a win,” said Ankhe Bradley, assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction.

Over the next few weeks, schools will host special activities with trivia questions to engage students and encourage daily reading of the book with their families. Similar activities took place in December with District 86 junior high students, according to the district.

Each student at Dirksen, Gompers, Hufford and Washington junior high schools received the book “Wonder” by R.J. Palacio to read at home, according to the district.