Lelulo's Loves Reading seeks to combine the love of pizza with the love of reading for kids
PLUM BOROUGH (KDKA) - Taking time to read can be a joy for some parents with their children and a challenge for others.
One local business is bringing the fun back to hitting the books.
So, here's a question: what can you get done in 20 minutes? Well, one local restaurant is challenging young readers to turn 20 minutes out of their day into a free pizza.
"I think, I don't know, kids being excited about getting a free pizza - yeah, I can read, I love reading," said Patyn McCune, the owner of Lelulo's Pizza in Plum.
She is also the mother of two young boys and said her son's desire to read gave her the idea to start "Lelulo's Loves Reading" a new promotion aimed at helping kids get back into books.
"A lot of kids are below their reading grade level, which is...discouraging is the wrong word, but just giving kids an incentive to be interested in something, and to be able to win a prize, the grand prize is a pizza party with your friends or your family," McCune said. "You can come in and make pizzas together. I just thought it was something different because there's nothing out there like this right now."
It's something that any student at any reading level can do, and all it takes is 20 minutes a day.
"We want kids to read 20 minutes a day during the week, so five pizza slices on the top [of the page] or per row," she explained. "Every time they read for 20 minutes, they color in the pizza. Then, if they fill it up for the month, they get a free pizza."
Every completed sheet becomes an entry for a monthly drawing where the winner gets a pizza party for their friends or family.
It's something McCune said can go a long way for some families as it did for her growing up.
"I come from not a wealthy background," she said. "I had a rough upbringing and things like "Book It" and being able to go somewhere with my friends and just not have to worry about asking my parents for money or having your friends' parents pay for anything else, it's just taken care of, is cool. To be that friend who says, "I won a free pizza party."
When it's all said and done, it's a win-win for young readers, it's growing a love for reading and turning it into a love for pizza and it's worth every bite.
