Congratulations to the Winner of First Book Canada's Scotiabank Reading Hero Challenge 2016 -- St. John Vianney Catholic School

TORONTO, ON--(Marketwired - May 17, 2016) - First Book Canada and Scotiabank, in collaboration with the Toronto Marlies, celebrated St. John Vianney Catholic School's grade 1 class winning the Scotiabank Reading Hero Challenge. The winning class received tickets to see the Toronto Marlies take on the Hartford Wolf Pack at the Ricoh Centre.

"I believe my class and I have integrated the program very well into our weekly routine as it has been incorporated into other subject areas as well. The benefits of the challenge are that the students are fully engaged and eager to do the activities. It has allowed them to extend their understanding by making connections, by further developing their vocabulary and reading and writing more. We brainstorm together and discuss what activities they would like to do," said Ivana Quaglietta, St. John Vianney Grade 1 Teacher.

The First Book Canada Scotiabank Reading Hero Challenge commenced on February 1, 2016. The grade one students of eight elementary schools in high-needs areas of the GTA began their eight week long journey towards completing the Reading Hero Challenge. The requirements for this challenge were to read eight books and complete a Chart paper book report at the end of each week for eight weeks.

The challenge was carefully tracked as it included a very strong social media presence on Twitter and was sourced through the hashtag #ReadingHeroChallenge. Stories, quotes and pictures of the reports as well as students engaged in reading activities were tagged with the hashtag which made for a really interactive and engaging competition. The final reports were submitted at the end of March and after review of all reports, St. John Vianney Catholic School took top honours.

"We are so excited about the results for The First Book Canada Reading Hero Challenge with Scotiabank and the Toronto Marlies," said Tom Best, Executive Director at First Book Canada. "This program has been a huge motivator to get kids reading in eight grade one classes across the GTA, serving children from low income families. We are very proud to have this unique association with Scotiabank and Zach Hyman and the Toronto Marlies organization. First Book Canada is delighted with the outcomes of the program in its first year, knowing hundreds of students just starting to learn to read have eight wonderful, brand new books of their very own to treasure for years to come."