Read-A-Palooza 2024

Enjoy a dog-friendly fall literacy jamboree with prizes, entertainment, snacks, and book/school supply/dog giveaways. provided by our generous in-kind sponsors!!

Join us on Saturday, October 12 from 10 am to noon at Fred Anderson Park and Dog Park to celebrate our fall reading challenge, Read-A-Palooza 2024, meet your fellow readers and event sponsors!  This event is dog-friendly and all pets must be on a leash.  There is a small and a large dog park adjacent to the event area.

ALL ARE WELCOME, whether you were able to participate in our Reading Challenge or not! For our reading challenge participants, make sure to bring your reading tracker so we can recognize your efforts.

All children will receive a new book and we will have some extra books and tickets to the ferris wheel at Navy Pier to give away for folks of all ages!

The first 75 kindergarten – 2nd grade students from SitStayRead Schools will receive a backpack filled with books from our sponsor Crate + Barrel.

What to expect:

Crate + Barrel Reading Nook with story times from guest readers, a Speaking + Listening Tent – come hang out and interview our dog handlers or read a book to one of our Certified Reading Assistance Dogs, Writing + Spelling Games, a Phantom Phone Booth – Share a Joke or Make Up a Story Over the Airwaves, Raffles, Refreshments from Lifeway Kefir and Trader Joe’s, Child Dental Kits from Mobile Care Chicago, Pup cups from Sploot Veterinary Services, Dog Frisbees from Just Food for Dogs , Grain-free, locally sources Barley’s Biscuits from Gateway to Learning, and more!