1. Planning your Reading Hack programme
Information for facilitator
This is an introduction to Reading Hack and a practical planning session which can be used with young people. There is a slightly longer version available for using with libraries which has more background information about Reading Hack.
You can also use this planning session to share example recruitment materials, your own or the Reading Agency’s. These can be found online at
For this planning session you will need:
Access to the Internet and YouTube
Pens, post it notes and paper
Planning your Reading Hack programme

2. What is Reading Hack?
Note for facilitator: This video is currently for training and planning purposes only. It is shared here as an unlisted video on YouTube. Please show young people but don’t share the link to this video on social media or your websites until you hear from us further.
[Introduction]
We’re running Reading Hack in our library authority. Reading Hack is a programme led by young people aged 13 to 24 who do reading activities and volunteering, called hacks, to gain skills and experience.   
Today we’re going to plan our Reading Hack programme. We want to work with you to decide what we offer young people in our library, to make it a place where they want to get involved.
Now we will watch the Reading Hack trailer.
[Watch the Reading Hack animation.]
Note for facilitator [do not read out]: Click on the image in the slide. This will take you to a new window in your internet browser. Or copy and paste this link into your internet browser:

3. What is a hack?
A hack is “a clever solution to a tricky problem. To hack is to modify or change something in an extraordinary way” [Urban Dictionary definition, 2009].
Examples include Lifehack, Museum Hack, IKEA Hackers which all take something established and remake or redefine it.
You redefine reading through your involvement with Reading Hack.
Note for facilitator: the definition for a hack appears when you click the mouse/next button. Don’t reveal this until you have finished the discussion question below.
Discussion (1 minute): This image is taken from Ikea Hackers. Based on the animation you have just seen, and the picture of this table, what do you think a ‘hack’ is? [reveal answer]
Image from Ikea Hackers:

4. Hack reading by doing an activity with reading at its heart
Remix the Internet into poetry
Make a Dystopian comic strip
Run a Manga Night
Inspire a child to love reading
Turn a book into a song
Create a poetry -themed DJ set
Play novel-inspired
Minecraft
Make a book trailer for a Book Trailer Cinema night
These are all examples of hacks [click to reveal each one]
Question for short discussion (1 min): Is there anything that we have done so far that counts as a hack?
Note for facilitator: There are more ideas from the Reading Agency (for libraries) and Reading Hack (for young people) websites. The Reading Hack website will be live in November Until then you can get ideas from the ‘hacks’ section of the practitioner area.)
Get more ideas from

5. How does Reading Hack work?
Do hacks in your library or school
Share your hacks online
and get ideas for new hacks
How does Reading Hack work for young people taking part? [click to reveal 3 boxes)
Do hacks in your library or school. This might involve planning and leading hacks, giving you valuable skills such as teamwork and leadership skills which you can use on your CVs and university applications.
Share your hacks online on the new Reading Hack website. You can also get ideas for new hacks.
Get skills, badges and prizes and compete with others in the Reading Hack League.
ives
Get skills, badges, prizes and
compete with others in the Reading Hack League

6. Planning
Libraries
Note for facilitator. Please do take a look at the three hack pathways for using Reading Hack. They can be found online. We don’t recommend sharing this framework with young people as the level of detail might be off-putting at this stage. But you might find it useful to mention it to them as the discussion develops –a way of focussing what they want to do, and how they can get more young people involved.
We’re now going to plan our Reading Hack programme. Here are some things to be thinking about:
1. What you want to do in your library?
Do you want to do lots of short fun hacks?
Do you want to get involved in leading and planning a longer project, like running a cinema evening?
Do you want to volunteer or help out with things happening in the library?
2. How can we get more young people coming along?

7. Get more ideas from www.readinghack.org.uk
Brainstorming
Brainstorm two lists on sheets of A4:
Things we are already doing
Things we want to do
Short-listing
Put all your ideas on a wall or lay them out on a table.
Get ready with the post-it notes.
Time to shortlist!
Scheduling
Arrange your final ideas into a rough order
Jot down some potential dates
Note for facilitator. Below is a practical session for planning your RH programme with young people. You will need pens, A4 paper and post it notes
1. Brainstorming
- On a flipchart jot down some of the things that are already planned and dates. These are part of your Reading Hack programme. Keeping them in mind will help you plan new activity too.
- Hand out sheets of A4 paper and pens. In groups or working together write down one idea per sheet of paper for hacks you would like to do. This can include a mixture of things you would like to do in your steering group, along with hacks for other young people in the library. Think about a programme of short activities (hack challenge), or a couple of longer projects (hack projects) or volunteering roles to get useful skills and experience.
- If you need inspiration, go online (although YP Reading Hack website isn’t available until November You can get ideas from the ‘hacks’ section of the practitioner area.)
If you want to run several short activities, why not consider doing a challenge where young people get a certificate for completing a certain number. Decide how many YP have to do to get a certificate
2. Short listing
Put all your ideas on a wall or lay them out on a table.
Get post-it notes. Time to shortlist!
Stick post-it notes with pros and cons onto each idea. Consider the following:
Does it sound fun?
Does it involve reading in a fun way?
Will it get lots of young people involved?
Do we have the budget?
Do we have enough people to make it happen? Can the library help us do it?
Is there a local partner or organisation we can work with?
3. Scheduling
Put your shortlist in a line and add some dates. This is your Reading Hack programme!
Get more ideas from

8. Join the Reading Hack community
Have you created a new idea for a hack? Add your hack online and join the Reading Hack community. Don’t forget to add your group too!
Note for facilitator: you may draw on existing ideas or generate your own ideas for hacks. If in the process of planning you come up with a new hack idea, encourage young people to go online and add their hack idea. They can win prizes and also join in with other young people who are hacking reading.

9. You’ve created your Reading Hack programme!
Next Steps
Plan another session to put your ideas into action and think about how you can get more young people involved.
Note for facilitator: Find a date for your next session to start making concrete plans.
You can get more information about running a steering group and tips for running great hacks from the Reading Hack practitioner’s area. You can also find out about using the Reading Hack brand to promote your offer.
The Reading Hack website will be live in November Until then you can get ideas from the ‘hacks’ section of the practitioner area.)
Get ideas and add your group: