The Raptors905 Program scoreboard is set!

First Book Canada, Raptors 905, Penguin Random House Canada, and Tangerine Bank laced up quickly and got 905 minutes of reading in for the fifth year in a row.

Toronto, ON (October 27, 2023)– From June 3rd, 2023 to August 4th, 2023, grade four to six students across the Greater Toronto Area participated in theRaptors 905 Summer Reading Challenge. The program encouraged students to read five age-appropriate titles across five weeks (one per week). All five books focused on celebrating and reflecting BIPOC voices and stories to encourage students to read books that reflect and are inclusive of all voices, stories, and experiences. Students from the program were provided a book bag filled with their own, free, brand-new copies of each of the 5 titles to keep in their home libraries.

To kick off this year’s Reading Challenge, 100 grade five students from across the Greater Toronto Area came together at the MLSE LaunchPad for an exciting launch event. Onsite, participants were running drills, working together, and building their skills on and off the court. The event would kick off the virtual series providing participants a chance to read the curated books, and meet the authors.

Currently, one in four Canadian households does not have a single book in them – early-year literacy has suffered for so many children across the country. Given the importance of literacy capacity, First Book Canada knows just how important it is for children to feel like they belong in their learning environments.

First Book Canada is building a world where every child has access to a quality education. Interested in partnering with First Book Canada? Learn more about how you can support and take action with First Book Canada atfirstbookcanada.org/take-action-canada/.