The top three classrooms in the Mayor's Holiday Reading Challenge were from the same school and the same grade level. First graders at Ninth District Elementary were rewarded on Wednesday with a special visit from the Covington Fire Department. The students in Ms. Childers', Ms. Zeis', and Ms. Marshall's classes got an up-close experience with some fire equipment and a fire truck. Ms. Childers' students also received happy meals from McDonald's for their first-place finish.

Grand Prize Winners of the challenge were recognized by Mayor Joe Meyer and City Commissioners at a recent city meeting.

Those winners include:
Melita Valle, pre-K, Biggs Early Childhood Education Center
Jaqueli Temaj Aguilar, kindergarten, John G. Carlisle Elementary
Miguel Barcia Manon, 1st grade, Glenn O. Swing Elementary
Akeem Thompson, 2nd grade, Ninth District Elementary
Angelica Gomez Cordova, 3rd grade, John G. Carlisle Elementary

Roughly 900 students actively participated in the challenge. Within a month, they had read 9,597,704 words, 16,798 books, and played 42,042 skill-building games. The Challenge was offered through Read Ready Covington.

Congratulations to all the students and teachers. Great job!