MTA and the Boston Red Sox Promote Literacy with Summer Reading Contest

Welcome to the 2011 MTA Red Sox Reading Game and the MTA Red Sox Most Valuable Educator Program. Deadline to submit entry forms is July 15, 2011.

Research tells us that the more children read, the better they read.  And the more children read outside of school, the better they perform in school.

This ongoing summer literacy partnership between the Massachusetts Teachers Association, the Boston Red Sox and The Hanover Insurance Group is a great source of pride for MTA members because it has encouraged students to read hundreds of thousands of books over the summer when they are away from school.

Summer Reading Campaign Components:
•  Kids who pledge to read nine books, one for each position on the baseball field, are entered into a drawing for prizes.

•  Posters showing Red Sox catcher Jason Varitek, the contest spokesman, and the logos of sponsors are distributed to MTA K-8 schools.

•  Thousands of  “reading box score bookmarks” and entry forms are sent to schools. Kids can also enter the contest by downloading the entry form online.

•  Student winners and their teachers are awarded pairs of tickets to a Red Sox game at Fenway Park.

•  Five grand prize winners receive tickets, bookstore gift cards and baseballs autographed by Jason Varitek . The grand prize winners also participate in an on-the-field recognition ceremony. Local recognition events are held in the five communities where the grand prize winners reside.

•  NESN airs public service announcements promoting the importance of literacy while the contest is going on.

•  Two newspaper advertisements appear in The Boston Globe, and the contest is promoted in MTA publications that reach more than 100,000 members throughout the state.