Welcome to the 9th annual Cove Readathon! 

OVERVIEW 

On Sunday, January 5th, our Cove School Readathon 2025 will officially launch. Emails will be sent out through the 99Pledges website that day, so students may start immediately seeking pledges or donations online from friends and family to reach their goal (We ask that each child raise $175). 

We want to thank you in advance for helping us make Readathon 2025 a rousing success! Please read with your child and share their unique fundraising link with family and friends.

Our PTO pays for many of the things you and your child have come to expect, need, and cherish from our school. You may be surprised how much the PTO pays for: professional development for teachers, instructional materials, classroom supplies and equipment, furniture, PE and playground equipment, campus events, parent education, campus improvements and much, much, more! 

This is our only PTO fundraiser, and we must raise over 50% of the PTO’s annual budget to function. 

HOW IT WORKS

We will no longer be tracking reading minutes. Instead, each student will receive 2 Reading Bingo cards - a Week 1 card and a Week 2 card. There are different cards for K-2 and for 3-5. During the week, the students can challenge themselves to complete as many reading activities on the Reading Bingo card as possible. If they get a Bingo (5 squares in a row across, down or diagonal), they will win one extra raffle entry for the assemblies being held on January 17 and 24. If they get a Blackout (all of the squares on the card are completed) they will win three extra raffle entries. 

Bingo Cards should be turned in to teachers in class by the end of the school day on Thursday, January 16 and Thursday, January 23. PLEASE make sure your student’s name is written in at the top of the Bingo Card and that a parent/caregiver has signed the Bingo Card as well. 

In the event that your child misplaces their Bingo Card, here are links to the Bingo Cards so that you can print copies out:

• K-2 Week 1 Card

• K-2 Week 2 Card

• 3-5 Week 1 Card

• 3-5 Week 2 Card

GUEST AUTHOR

Our Author Assembly on January 24th will feature Sam Sattin (uncle of 3rd grader Rex Finneran) and author of Unico, a Scholastic Books graphic novel. He will do two separate assemblies, one for K-2 and one for 3-5. See information below about how to pre-order books, and Sam will sign them for students after the assembly.

Click here for more information on the author.

IMPORTANT DATES

• January 6 | Book Bags go home with students containing info about Readathon

• January 6-9 | Please drop off any books you would like to contribute to the Book Swap in the Cove Gallery

• January 10 | Kick off Readathon School Assembly | Book Swap | Bingo play begins at 3pm!

• January 16 | Turn in Week 1 Bingo Cards to teachers to earn additional raffle entries | Week 2 Bingo play starts at 3pm

• January 17 | Week 1 Assembly | Raffles and announcement of Week 1 fundraising | Dress as your Favorite Story Book Character Day 

• January 21 | Bedtime Story via Zoom with Principal Michelle Walker plus Bedtime Story in Spanish with Parent Glenda Lugo

• January 23 | Turn in Week 2 Bingo Cards to your teachers to earn additional raffle entries  | Cove Cafe all day - each class will have a designated time to come read at the pop-up Cove Cafe and enjoy some hot chocolate

• January 24 | Week 2 Assembly | Raffles and announcement of Week 2 fundraising |  | Guest Author Sam Sattin | Pajama Day

• January 28 | Donation Collection ends at 11:59pm 

• January 31 | Final Awards Readathon School Assembly

View our Parent Calendar here!

Important Links

• 99pledges donation page

PRIZES

• Reading-related raffles: these will be individual prizes. Prizes will include gift cards to Book Passage, etc.

• Fundraising:

  • Individual: At the Jan 17 and Jan 24 assemblies there will be one or more raffle prizes for individuals that have at least one donation. These will include gift cards for a treat or Cove swag.

  • Grade-level: At the Jan 17 and 24 assemblies, the grade level that has the highest funds raised for the week will earn an extra 15 minutes of recess to be used when convenient.

  • Final: At the Jan 31 assembly we will announce the grade level that raised the most funds overall. The winning grade will get to have a super special picnic lunch party (date TBD) with pizza, drinks, treats and outdoor games.

  • If our school reaches its overall fundraising goal of $60,000, the top fundraiser in each grade level will get to slime Principal Walker at the Jan 31 assembly! 

  • We will also have a prize for our top individual overall fundraiser (in terms of $), and one for the individual that collected the highest number of pledges (in terms of # of individual donors).

The Readathon will be run through the 99Pledges online donation website. This will streamline the collection process and help students reach a broader audience. You will receive a custom link to your child’s web page, which you can share with family and friends directly or via social media to solicit donations.

Online donations can be made via your child’s unique 99Pledges link by credit card. Donations by check or cash may be made in the office. Checks should be made out to: The Cove PTO. 

WAYS YOU CAN HELP 

• Post and share your child’s 99Pledges page with family and friends via your social media

• Help your child ask family, friends, neighbors, or coworkers to donate by sending a link to their custom 99Pledges page.

• Encourage your child to read, and have fun with all of the reading activities

• Honesty! While it’s tempting for students to overstate the number of reading tasks they have completed, we hope parents can use this as a valuable opportunity to teach the importance of honest, hard work.

• There will be opportunities to volunteer at school for some of the Readathon-related activities, such as the Book Swap on January 10th and the Cove Cafe on January 23rd. If you are interested in volunteering for either of these activities, please contact Natalie Kaniel at natkaniel@gmail.com 

Thank you for your Support! Contact us at president@covepto.org.