This story originally appeared at InspireMore.
Did you know that students who don’t read proficiently by the 3rd grade are 4 times more likely to drop out before getting their high school diploma?
Reading is so important for a kid’s development, but with so many flashy apps and video games out there, how do we get kids excited about picking up a book? One school in Buffalo, New York, had a brilliant solution…
A book vending machine.
Students from pre-K to 4th grade earn special gold coins through a reading program to put in the vending machine. Then they can select a book of their choice for free. How cool is that?
What’s more, the kids get to take their books home and build up a personal library. How many elementary schoolers do you know who have a personal library?
And here’s the thing: It’s working! Teachers and administrators say their students can’t wait to read their books and get a new one from this one-of-a-kind vending machine.Whizzco