Renfrew High welcomed Scotland’s First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, to launch the First Minister’s Reading Challenge across Scottish secondary schools on Monday 10th September.
Chiming with the First Minister’s visit, prior to the national roll-out of the campaign, the school library participated in a year’s Reading Challenge pilot programme – that has sought to engage and stimulate pupils’ interest, usage and positive perception of the school library and resources. The success of last year’s pilot project will now be replicated across Scottish secondary schools.
And Head teacher Billy Burke added:
“We were delighted to participate in the secondary pilot of the First Minister’s Reading Challenge and I have hugely been impressed by how our young people have embraced the opportunity.
“Literacy unlocks the wider curriculum, and it is fantastic to see our young pupils’ enjoying, embracing and leading in this area of their learning.”
The First Minister was welcomed to the library by a cohort of pupils who have been involved in pilot projects throughout the past year – including S1 paired readers who went out to local primary schools and pupils from the Magic Torch Comic club who published a graphic novel on the history and heritage of Renfrew.
Amongst the hustle and bustle of press flashbulbs and a media gathering, The First Minister took time to speak to pupils about their reading habits and involvement with school library projects and said: “I set up the First Minister’s Reading Challenge to instil a love of reading from an early age. Reading not only opens up a whole new world of adventure, but also helps develop and improve children’s literacy.”
