Pizza Hut is taking a page out of its old playbook.
The pizza chain is bringing back a nostalgic invention to keep kids reading and away from technology this summer.
Gen X and Millennials likely remember a time when they were incited to read during their summer break from school — just so they could get a Personal Pan Pizza from Pizza Hut as a reward.
That program is now making a comeback with BOOK IT!’s Summer of Stories.
“Get ready to turn reading time into pizza time!” a post from the BOOK IT! Instagram page read. “This summer, keep your kids’ reading, learning, and loving books… all while earning FREE pizza.”
The program opened for enrollment on May 1, and readers who hit their milestones will be given digital Reading Award Certificates, which can be redeemed for a free one-topping Personal Pan Pizza from Pizza Hut.
Parents can enroll their eligible kids — those in Pre-K through 6th grade — through the BOOK IT! app.
Summer of Stories runs from June 1 through August 31, and students can redeem one Reading Award Certificate per month.
The certificate must be used to reward the student who did the reading, and the student must be present.
BOOK IT! originated in the mid-1980s when the then-president of Pizza Hurt, Arthur Gunther, and Bud Gates, a marketing executive for the company, were discussing President Ronald Reagan’s calls for literacy support, People reported.
When Gates thought about what would encourage his own child to read, he came up with the idea of using pizza and pizza parties in classrooms as an incentive.
Less than a year after its launch, the program saw 7 million students in 233,080 classrooms across the nation taking part, the LA Times reported.
Many Gen X and Millennial fans were ecstatic — and jealous — to see the return of the BOOK IT! program.
“Millenials are begging you to include adults please!” one person wrote.
“Where is the @bookitprogram FOR parents?! Please bring it backkk,” another begged.
“If we still have our purple pins, can we do an adult version??” someone asked.
“Ok but what if we don’t have kids and want to participate? Asking for myself and my inner child who loved this program,” a fan commented.
“Can us Gen X and millennials get this back for us!!! Us big kid need pizza too,” one added.
Read the full article here
