The 33rd Annual Reading Marathon
Information regarding PBS Utah’s 33rd Annual Reading Marathon will be available in the fall. The Kickoff Party will be held on Saturday, October 25th from 10am-2pm at the Salt Lake Main Library in downtown Salt Lake City. Sign up for the Parent & Educator Newsletter or check back in October for the most recent updates.
Mini Reading Marathon Funding (for Educators)
Read and Dream will be the theme this year!
Mini Reading Marathon Funding is for organizations outside of Salt Lake County
If the Kickoff Party and many of the Adventure Pass Partners are too far away for the children in your school, library, or organization to participate, you can apply for funding to hold your own Mini Reading Marathon challenge and celebration.
The PBS Utah Kids & Education team is accepting applications to support Reading Marathon activities throughout the state and PBS Utah broadcast area. The application link will be open August 1 – August 31. Funding is available to schools, libraries, and non-profit organizations serving Utah’s children outside of Salt Lake County. Grant awardees will be funded $100-$500 to hold a local Reading Marathon and Celebration.
Funding Requirements:
- The organization must serve children ages preschool through 6th grade.
- The organization must be located outside of Salt Lake County.
- The organization must host a Mini Reading Marathon in November.
- The organization will provide readers with a creative reward or celebration before January 31, 2026, for those who meet their goal during the Mini Reading Marathon.
- A representative of the organization must complete the application and submit a current W-9 (form will be available on the signup page) with the application or email it to: education@pbsutah.org.
- The selected organizations will report back to PBS Utah regarding their activities in the spring, 2026. This report will include information about the organization’s Mini Reading Marathon, celebration, number of children participating, pictures (including PBS Utah’s media release forms), how funds were spent (including receipts), etc. The PBS Utah Kids & Education team will email grant awardees a survey report link in the spring.
Organizations that do not meet the above grant requirements because they are within the boundaries of Salt Lake County are encouraged to participate in PBS Utah's Reading Marathon, Kickoff Party, and Adventure Pass program. Download the reading trackers and learn more at www.pbsutah.org/reading.
The application window will close on August 31, 2025, at midnight. Funding awardees will be notified between September 8-12, 2025.
Important Dates
October 25, 2025
Kickoff Party
10AM - 2PM
Salt Lake Main Library
Ready To Learn is Supported by
Beesley Family Foundation, Herbert L. and Elsa B. Michael Foundation, Lawrence T. & Janet T. Dee Foundation, R. Harold Burton Foundation, Ruth Eleanor Bamberger and John Ernest Bamberger Memorial Foundation, and the Sorenson Legacy Foundation.
Information for those who completed last year's marathon:
Congratulations! You PAWS’d to READ with PBS Utah!
All participants who have submitted minutes, you have received an email for each individual pass. You must download, save, and print each pass. Bookmark this email and keep a copy of the pass for your records. Keep the Adventure Pass together and bring them with you when adventuring.
Please note: because of the volume of Adventure Pass recipients, we will not be able to maintain and distribute Adventure Passes after they are initially delivered.
How the Adventure Pass Works
- The Adventure Pass includes tickets and coupons to your favorite museums, zoos, and activities around town.*
- The Adventure Pass is valid for 2025. Each coupon is valid for specific months based on the location.
- To earn a 2025 Adventure Pass, each child must read (or be read to) for 600 minutes in the November 2024 PBS Utah Reading Marathon. Adventure Passes are valid for children between preschool – 6th grade.
- Adults and other family members who do not have an Adventure Pass will pay regular admission prices unless otherwise noted.
- The Adventure Pass can only be used one time at each location unless otherwise noted.
Questions?
*The booklet will contain rewards from the following venues across Utah:
Adventure Pass Partners and Offerings **
Christa McAuliffe Space Center ($5 Coupon for Entry) All year
Clark Planetarium (One Free Hansen Dome Show Child Admission w/Adult Admission Purchase) All year
Discovery Gateway(One Free Child Admission with Paying Adult) Sept-Nov
Hogle Zoo (One Free Child Admission with Paying Adult) All Year
Intermountain Therapy Animals (One Free Book) All Year
The Leonardo (One Free Child Admission with Paying Adult) All year
Natural History Museum of Utah (One Free Child Admission with Paying Adult) All Year
Ogden Nature Center(One Free Family Admission for Four) Jan-Mar
Red Butte Garden (One Free Child Admission with Paying Adult) All year
Salt Lake City Public Library (One Free Book) Jan-Feb
Scheels (One Free Child and One Free Adult Daily Ferris Wheel Ticket) All year
Seaquest Aquarium (PLEASE NOTE: PBS KIDS Utah has learned that as of March 2025, the SeaQuest Aquarium will not be able to honor the Adventure Pass coupon due to a change in ownership. We apologize for the inconvenience.)
St. George Children’s Museum (One Free Child Admission with Paying Adult) All year
St. George Dinosaur Discovery Site (One Free Child Admission with Paying Adult) All year
Thanksgiving Point (One Free Child Admission with Paying Adult) Jan-Mar
Tracy Aviary (One Free Child Admission with Paying Adult) All Year
University of Utah Athletics (10 Free Child Passes + 50% Off Paying Adults) Select from the following - Redeem Online:
Men’s Basketball (website):
January 11th, 5:00pm vs Oklahoma State
January 28th, 8:00pm vs Cincinnati
February 2nd, 7:00pm vs Colorado
March 1st, 5:00pm vs Arizona State
March 4th, 7:00pm vs West Virginia
Women’s Basketball (website):
January 11th, 1:30pm vs Houston
January 22nd, 7:00pm vs Kansas
February 12th, 7:00pm vs Colorado
February 8th, 1:30pm vs UCF
February 18th, 7:00pm vs Oklahoma State
Utah Film Center: Tumbleweeds Film Festival($5 Discounted Tumbleweed Festival Child Admission) Special Event April
Utah Shakespeare Festival(One Free Child and Adult Admission + 50% off Additional Tickets) All Year
Utah Symphony | Utah Opera(One Free Child Ticket to a Family Concert Series Show) Special Event Mar-April
USU Eastern Prehistoric Museum in Price (Free Family Admission) All Year
