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South Suburban School Sets Record For Reading

RICHTON PARK, Ill. (WBBM) -- A south suburban elementary school is being announced Tuesday as first in the nation, if not the world, in the number of minutes students spent reading this school year.

As WBBM Newsradio 780's Bernie Tafoya reports, the 500 students at Sauk Elementary School in Richton Park read more than 1.5 million minutes this school year, thus beating all other school districts in the country.

LISTEN: Newsradio 780's Bernie Tafoya reports

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Matteson School District 162 Supt. Dr. Blondean Davis said reading scores have skyrocketed along with that level of reading.

"It's been kind of a badge of honor at the school to see it – 'Well, what did you read today; how many chapters did you read today?'" Davis said. "It's read throughout the school, and a couple of months ago, we were chosen as one of the six schools in the nation that had read over a million minutes."

Dr. Davis says the honor, bestowed by Scholastic Books, is wonderful. But she hopes the children's desire to read continues long after this school year.

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