Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS) is participating in the 2021 Read to the Final Four literacy program. IPS is the largest school district competing in Indiana, with all third grade classrooms from 53 of the district’s nearly 80 schools joining the reading competition. The 2021 Read to the Final Four already has more than 300 schools and 23,000 third grade students registered statewide.
“We all know reading is fundamental, but it is also critical to the development of every child,” said IPS Superintendent Aleesia Johnson. “Through the Read to the Final Four program, students will improve their literacy skills by learning new words, phrases and definitions, while building confidence. With access to nearly 6,000 titles, the potential for growth in all IPS third graders is exponential.”
The NCAA and Indianapolis Host Committee have teamed up to leave a lasting, positive impact on students statewide through this reading initiative. Read to the Final Four encourages and inspires local third graders to achieve reading growth through a competition-style program. The program is giving students free and unlimited reading practice on a personalized digital platform containing more than 6,000 digital books.
The main event is an engaging, bracketed reading competition that uses a digital literacy platform, powered by Renaissance myON®, to provide access to books and track time spent reading. The top 68 schools throughout the state will be selected during an official selection show Jan. 29, to advance to the final bracket competition. Teams will then advance based on the number of minutes read during each week, with the winning school announced during the 2021 NCAA Final Four festivities April 3–5, in Indianapolis.
Read to the Final Four is a cornerstone program of the NCAA Final Four. Schools interested in participating this year can visit FinalFourIndy.com.