The Premier's Reading Challenge kicked off yesterday with Premier Jeremy Rockliff urging all Tasmanian students to read as often as possible over the next 10 weeks.
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"No matter what anyone's aspiration, literacy and reading skills are fundamental to achieve that aspiration," Mr Rockliff said at Montague Bay Primary School.
"It's not a competition, but it's a challenge to read as much and as many books as possible over the course of the next 10 weeks".
The annual event, which has been supported for the past six years by Hawthorn Football Club, is aimed at improving children's literacy skills with prizes for students who complete the challenge.
Hawthorn state manager David Cox said they were proud to shoulder some of the responsibility to encourage and excite kids to take up reading.
"We've been part of this community for 22 years, and we take our role as an organisation that can help improve young Tasmanians' lives very seriously," he said.
The Premier said the program is also part of the government's strategy to boost literacy rates statewide, which have fallen behind national levels.
"We recognise there is more to do," he said.
"We have very clear targets and a goal in mind to be better than a national minimum standard by 2030."
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