Summer reading contest encourages children to stop the “summer slide”
Elijah Riggs (left) and Sylvia Riggs (right) receiving their $1,000 scholarship (Photo by Sky Arnold)
Last year’s Tristar Reads contest turned into something of a sibling rivalry in the Riggs’ house in Kingston Springs.
Then seventh-grader Elijah Riggs and his sixth-grade sister Sylvia held a daily competition to see who could read the most. As the August 4, 2024, end date for the summer reading contest approached, the siblings were close in total reading minutes.
“I thought that my sister would probably beat me,” said Elijah Riggs. “We counted up the night before, but I thought she’d pull an all-nighter.”
When the final totals were in, Elijah spent 33 thousand minutes of reading during the contest and his sister was close behind with 30 thousand minutes of reading. That was enough for Elijah to take home the contest’s Overall Winner prize while Sylvia won its Middle School Student category.
“I just really wanted to beat him. I was so close too,” said Sylvia Riggs.
This week the summer reading contest returns, running from May 27 to August 4, 2025. It’s available for all Tennessee students entering grades K-12 who register online to participate.
At the end of the summer, students logging the most reading minutes in the four categories below will win a 1,000 scholarship.
One overall winner.
One elementary school student (K-4).
One middle school student (grades 5-8).
One high school student (grades 9-12).
Prior Tristar Reads winners will be ineligible to compete in the same category.
Education advocacy organization Tennesseans for Student Success created Tristar Reads to encourage children to read during their summer break and prevent the so-called “summer slide” many children experience when they’re not in school. In a press release announcing the contest’s return, the organization cited the recent National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) testing results as an important factor in why it’s needed. Tennessee’s fourth and eighth-graders beat the national average on the test but nearly seven in ten are still reading below NAEP proficient.
“Last year students spent nearly 680 thousand minutes reading during our contest, and we're excited to see what this year's participants can accomplish over the summer," said Tennesseans for Student Success President and CEO Lana Skelo. “We launched Tristar Reads to help prevent the "summer slide" that many students struggle to climb out of when they return to school in the fall. Reading just 20 minutes a day empowers children to keep their reading comprehension skills sharp and puts them on the path to success when the summer break is over."
The Tennessee Firefly is a product of and supported by Tennesseans for Student Success.
