Posted on: Friday 21 October 2022
Six-year-old Sophie Hyde will be able to buy lots of new books after completing a national reading challenge.
She was one of more than 700 children who took part in this year’s ‘Gadgeteers’ Summer Reading Challenge run by Torfaen Libraries.
Sophie was given a £100 gift voucher for Smyths Toy Store after her name was chosen at random from a list of nearly 300 children who completed the challenge.
The Summer Reading Challenge is a national competition run by The Reading Agency. The challenge encourages families to visit their local library during the Summer holidays and asks four to eleven year olds to borrow and read any six library books during this time.
Shelly Hyde, Sophie’s mum, said: “Sophie and her sister Emma love going to the library to find a new book to bring home and an audiobook to listen to in the car.
“They really enjoyed visiting during the school holidays and were very pleased to get a medal at the end of the Summer Reading Challenge.”
Sophie, who is a pupil at Pontnewydd Primary School, was presented with the voucher, together with a certificate and medal at a special school assembly.
Councillor Joanne Gauden, Executive Member for Skills, Economy and Regeneration, said: “Reading is such an important life skill, and if we can encourage young people to enjoy reading when they are young, hopefully they will continue to enjoy reading as they get older.
“I would like to congratulate everyone who took part in the challenge, especially Sophie, who was lucky enough to be crowned the winner this year.”
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