Pickerington Elementary promotes reading, good behavior with book vending machine
Excitement is up at Pickerington Elementary over a new vending machine in the school's cafeteria.
Rather than doling out sodas and sweets, however, this vending machine is stocked with books, which school officials hope will ply students who exhibit good behavior with stories to bolster their reading skills and fire their imaginations.
"I think it's awesome, since reading books is one of my favorite things to do," third-grader Abdulwassie Suleman said.
Fellow third-grader Erin Ampah said she now has added motivation to earn a Golden Stripe Award, recognition given to Pickerington Elementary students for positive behavior; those who earn the awards also get to select a book from the machine.
"I will try to win the Golden Stripe because that’s the only way to get a book," Erin said. "I hope to get a book from the vending machine because reading can be fun."
The $5,000 machine, unveiled Jan. 25, was purchased with money raised through a Parent Teacher Organization flower sale.
Once a month, each teacher will select a student to receive a Golden Stripe Award. That student then will be able to insert a golden token into the machine to receive a book as part of the school’s Project Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) initiative.
The school’s PBIS motto is “We earn our stripes when we GRRR.”
GRRR stands for Grit, Respect, Responsible and Ready.
“We wanted to have something extra special for those winners, which is where the book vending machine came into conversations,” Principal Dave Zwiebel said. “The hope is to partner with our community and families to keep the vending machine stocked.”
Zwiebel said the machine can hold up to 300 books, and the initial stock also was provided by the PTO.
Related story: Pickerington Schools launches program to build reading skills for third-graders
He added that the school is planning a book drive during Right to Read Week, which is March 1-5, and the staff will ask families to sponsor or donate new or unused books.
"We would like for our students to develop a love of reading, and the book vending machine can help with that," Zwiebel said. "The machine can provide a wide variety of books that will encourage the students to read more about a specific topic or character, which in turn will help students develop a reading habit.
"We want the gift of a book for their positive behavior to continually reinforce the intrinsic motivation that drive all of us to be well-rounded individuals.”
Third-graders Calvin Brokaw, London Towns, Janae Jordan and Micah Haverfield all said they're being extra mindful about practicing the "GRRR" principles in hopes of receiving a Golden Stripes Award.
"I think it is cool because people can keep the books that they like and get better at reading," Calvin said.
Janae added, "I think it is really surprising to have a new machine in the school building so all of the Golden Stripe winners can get more reading experience. It will help me be a stronger reader."
Zwiebel said he hopes the machine will encourage reading and good behavior, as well as help the school build partnerships with families and students.
He plans to reach out to Barnes and Noble to create a designated day annually at the company's Pickerington store to aid drives to stock the machine.
"Even if the families choose to use an online retailer, we would be able to have them 'add a note' or 'gift message' on the item and send it to us to make sure that message goes into the machine for the next generation," Zwiebel said. "This idea is the one I am most excited about and hope that our community helps it come to fruition.”
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This article originally appeared on ThisWeek: Pickerington Elementary promotes reading, good behavior with book vending machine
