{"id":23240,"date":"2026-01-07T10:29:26","date_gmt":"2026-01-07T16:29:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/slrm\/blog\/?p=23240"},"modified":"2026-01-07T10:30:29","modified_gmt":"2026-01-07T16:30:29","slug":"texas-america250-reading-challenge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/slrm\/blog\/2026\/01\/texas-america250-reading-challenge\/","title":{"rendered":"Celebrate and Learn Our Nation\u2019s History Through Your Library with the Texas America250 Reading Challenge"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"1000\" src=\"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/slrm\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/BLUE-TX-AM-250-Reading-Challenge-Self-Promo-Square-SM-1000x1000.png\" alt=\"Texas America 250 logo\" class=\"wp-image-23241\" style=\"width:424px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/slrm\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/BLUE-TX-AM-250-Reading-Challenge-Self-Promo-Square-SM-1000x1000.png 1000w, https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/slrm\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/BLUE-TX-AM-250-Reading-Challenge-Self-Promo-Square-SM-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/slrm\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/BLUE-TX-AM-250-Reading-Challenge-Self-Promo-Square-SM-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/slrm\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/BLUE-TX-AM-250-Reading-Challenge-Self-Promo-Square-SM-768x768.png 768w, https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/slrm\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/BLUE-TX-AM-250-Reading-Challenge-Self-Promo-Square-SM-50x50.png 50w, https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/slrm\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/BLUE-TX-AM-250-Reading-Challenge-Self-Promo-Square-SM.png 1201w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Ready to celebrate 250 years of American independence in a big way? Join Texans statewide in the Texas America250 Reading Challenge, hosted by TSLAC and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/centerforthebook\">Texas Center for the Book<\/a>. It\u2019s simple: log 2,500 minutes\u2014that\u2019s about 41 hours\u2014of reading, exploring Texas state parks, or giving back through service between January 1 and December 31, 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Complete the challenge and you\u2019ll earn a special certificate signed by Governor Greg Abbott, available from your local public or school librarian. It\u2019s a fun, meaningful way to connect with history, nature, and your community\u2014while earning bragging rights!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Texas America250 Reading Challenge qualifying activities include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Reading books and\/or listening to audiobooks. The Texas Center for the Book especially encourages reading about Texas and American history, as well as Texas and American nature, wildlife, and space exploration topics.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Attending library storytimes or other library events. Find a Library: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/findalibrary\">www.tsl.texas.gov\/findalibrary<\/a>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Volunteering in their local communities as part of the national America250 America Gives initiative: <a href=\"https:\/\/america250.org\/america-gives\/ways-to-give\/\">america250.org\/america-gives\/ways-to-give\/<\/a>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Visiting a Texas State Park. Plan your trip now at <a href=\"https:\/\/tpwd.texas.gov\/state-parks\/\">tpwd.texas.gov\/state-parks<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Texas America250 Reading Challenge is self-reported. Learn more\u2014view the program guidelines, read the FAQ, download a printable reading log map, and more\u2014on the website at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/america250\/challenge\">www.tsl.texas.gov\/america250\/challenge<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We encourage you to share your experience, whether you\u2019re reading, volunteering, or spending time at a state park. Please tag us <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/socialmedia\">@tslac<\/a> on social media, and use the hashtag <strong>#TexasAmerica250<\/strong>. Thank you for celebrating Texas America250 with us!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">TSLAC is proud to work on the Texas America250 Commission alongside the Office of the Governor, Economic Development and Tourism Office; the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission; the State Board of Education; and the Bullock Texas State History Museum. Learn more about statewide events and programming at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.texasamerica250.com\/\">www.texasamerica250.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Ready to celebrate 250 years of American independence in a big way? Join Texans statewide in the Texas America250 Reading Challenge, hosted by TSLAC and the Texas Center for the Book. It\u2019s simple: log 2,500 minutes\u2014that\u2019s about 41 hours\u2014of reading, exploring Texas state parks, or giving back through service between January 1 and December 31,&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":200,"featured_media":23243,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[110],"class_list":["post-23240","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/slrm\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23240","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/slrm\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/slrm\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/slrm\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/200"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/slrm\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23240"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/slrm\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23240\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23242,"href":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/slrm\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23240\/revisions\/23242"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/slrm\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/23243"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/slrm\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23240"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/slrm\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23240"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tsl.texas.gov\/slrm\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23240"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}