Virginia Readers' Choice Program

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Every year, Crestwood Elementary is an active participant in the Virginia Readers' Choice Program. This is a statewide program that is sponsored by the Virginia State Reading Association with the purpose of:

This program began in the 1981-82 school year and for several years awards were given at only one level. The first year for multiple level awards was 1986-87 with awards for one Elementary, one Middle, and one High School book. The following year, the Primary level was added, and four books, one at each level, have received awards each year since then.

Books must meet several eligibility requirements in order to be considered for inclusion on the list of nominated books. First, a book must be recognized as noteworthy in the field of children's/young adult literature. It must have been published within five years prior to the ballot on which it appears and it must be appropriate for the level for which it is nominated.

At Crestwood, we participate at two of the levels, Primary and Elementary. In order to be eligible to vote, a participant must be exposed to at least four of the ten nominated books by reading them himself, having them read aloud to him, or a combination of the two.

All students at the Primary level (grades K-3) are exposed to the books during their library time. We read them aloud and discuss them and then each child is permitted to cast a secret vote for his/her favorite after all ten have been read.

At the Elementary level, the program is optional. All the students in grade 4-6 are exposed to the books on their list through a series of booktalks that are designed to get them interested in reading the books on their own. Books that are short enough are read to the students during their library time. Students are eligible to fill out a ballot as soon as they have read the required number of books.

The votes from Crestwood are tallied and sent off to be included with the votes from other Fairfax County Public Schools. The FCPS totals are then sent off to be tallied with all the votes from other participating school districts in the state. Every year, the students look forward to getting the exciting news that tells them which books were the state winners.

2007-2008 list of nominated books at the Primary and Elementary levels

Winning books since 1981-82 at the Primary and Elementary levels

Winning books for 2006-2007

 

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	Last Updated October 18, 2007 Curator: Kathy Nutter kathryn.nutter@fcps.edu