Top 10 reading challenges for kids, 2026–27
The ten, in order
- Peabody's Winter Break challenge · ours. 19 December 2026 to 3 January 2027: 10, 6 or 4 books by age, a tracker kept on the device, a chart and a certificate to print. Free, no account, nothing typed by a child.
- Scholastic Parents: Winter Reading Challenge for Kids of All Ages. Twenty-five prompts readable on the page, for ages 3 to 13, with a printable tracker and a poster version; no sign-up mentioned. Posted 10 Dec 2025 with no dates, so it can be used again.
- St. Louis County Library: 1000 Books Before Kindergarten. Year-round, from birth to kindergarten; books read by anyone count, rereads too. A printable paper log or Beanstack; register at a branch or online for the milestone prizes.
- Las Vegas-Clark County Library District: Winter Reading Challenge. Last season ran 2–31 January 2026 for kids, teens and adults: five hours of reading in January, tracked on Beanstack or a paper bookmark log, with an age-suited prize for finishing.
- Watertown Public Library (Wisconsin): Winter Library Challenge. An eight-week challenge (last season's) with weekly goals in reading, creating and taking part; register online, then collect a paper activity log; stamps, prizes and a free book for kids and teens.
- Carmel Clay Public Library (Indiana): Winter Reading Program. This season: listed by TownPlanner from 20 December 2026 to 31 January 2027, for kids, teens and adults; any books count; families register through the library's Beanstack site. Prizes not named.
- Eastern Oklahoma Library System: 2026 Reading Challenge. A year-long 2026 challenge for every age: a book a month from a different genre, print, ebook or audio. Needs a Beanstack account.
- Campbell County Public Library: Winter Reading Challenge. A January challenge for all ages (last season's page): 30 prompts, one book may count for several, each prompt a prize entry; sign-up on Beanstack.
- The Reading Agency: Winter Mini Challenge (UK). Read three or more books you choose and add them to an online profile, for a virtual badge and a printable certificate; free. Last season ran 1 December 2025 to 20 February 2026.
- Pizza Hut BOOK IT!. October to March, this school year: a teacher enrols a class, or a homeschool parent sets the goal in the BOOK IT! app; each month's goal met earns a certificate for a free Personal Pan Pizza.
How this list is made
Ranked by what a family needs to start: nothing at all first, then a paper log beside a library sign-up, then an online account, then a class or an app sign-in; within each, this season's dates before last season's. Each row but ours was read on its own page on 30 Oct 2026 and is linked; a page that showed only last season's dates says so.