The Virginia State Reading Association Award
The Virginia State Reading Association Award, in which students vote on
their favorite books and authors, is sponsored by the Virginia State Reading
Association. The VSRA is a group that is committed to promoting literacy
throughout the state of Virginia. Their six goals, which can be found on their
website, are the following:
1.
Promote quality literacy instruction
2.
Support and disseminate literacy research
3.
Foster interaction on literacy issues through collaboration, networking
and partnerships
4.
Encourage legislation that advances literacy
5. Provide quality professional development opportunities in the area of literacy education
6. Promote lifelong reading (http://www.vsra.org/)
The reading award is part of the Young Readers Program. This program was designed in an effort to encourage students to read and to actively participate in giving an award to that author and book that they feel is most deserving. To be able to vote, a student must have been exposed to at least four of the books on the reading list, be it by reading the book him or herself, or having the book read aloud to him or her. Reading lists for the books eligible for this award are announced to the school systems in the spring, and those books that won the award for the year are announced in the spring as well (http://www.vsra.org/). The VSRA website states that the awards were first given for one grade level in 1982, and in 1986, awards were given for one book of the elementary reading level, one at the middle school level, and one at the high school level (http://www.vsra.org/). As the awards are given to contemporary novels only, the books on the reading list cannot have been published more than five years before it was placed on the ballot (http://www.vsra.org/). The purpose of the Young Readers Program, also outlined on the website, is as follows:
1.
to encourage young readers to become better acquainted with contemporary
books with outstanding literary appeal
2.
to broaden students' awareness of literature as a life-long pleasure
3. to encourage reading aloud in classrooms as a means of introducing reading for pleasure
4. to honor favorite books and their authors (http://www.vsra.org/)
Right
now, students are participating in this program. The current voting deadline is
April 15, 2005. For
more information on this award, visit the VSRA website at http://www.vsra.org/
PREVIOUS WINNERS<-- click here to see a table of the previous winners of this award.