City’s Joleon Lescott has pledged his support by becoming a Reading Star which sees him to talk about his favourite books and set reading challenges via a set of online videos.
These challenges are used to support over 30,000 children in 1,000 schools and libraries, who are taking part in a 10-week reading intervention with Premier League branded materials, including certificates, wristbands, reading journals and wall charts.
Lescott said: “Reading is very important to develop skills. The more you read and enjoy it, the more you absorb and it can only hold you in good stead in future years. One book I remember reading growing up is Funnybones, it’s about a family of skeletons with a pet dog that crumbles every time it gets scared.
“Another favourite is the original Ronaldo autobiography. He is a hero of mine. It’s about his story growing up as a young boy and getting into football along with the good and bad times of France ’98 when they lost in the final.”
The latest National Literacy Trust research of over 35,000 8 to 16 year-olds shows that only one boy in four reads outside of class every day, and almost two thirds of boys prefer watching TV to reading (63.6%).
Research study into the effectiveness of Premier League Reading Stars has found that it is having a dramatic impact on participating pupils:
- Three out of four of pupils made six months’ to a year’s progress in reading in just 10 weeks
- The number of pupils who read every day had doubled by the end of the programme
- Nearly nine out of ten pupils said they now read more because they know Premier League footballers read
- 50% of pupils joined their public library
Jim Sells, Manager of the programme at the National Literacy Trust said: “We’re delighted to be working with the Premier League to launch the eleventh year of our Reading Stars programme.
“The National Literacy Trust’s experience in supporting children to read for pleasure, combined with Premier League football’s huge influence, means we have a fun and appealing programme with proven results.
“Using football as a hook to get children to enjoy reading enriches their lives, helps them to succeed at school and gain vital skills for the future.”
