Little heroes, big adventures
Cats in space, young detectives on the trail of clues, and friends on a treasure hunt: Once again, elementary school students from Augsburg and the surrounding region impressively demonstrated their reading and storytelling talents, delighting both the audience and the jury alike. For the third time, FORUM hosted the popular “Bookworm Challenge,” in which a total of 27 children from 8 different elementary schools in Augsburg, Merching, Mering, Willprechtszell, and Geltendorf participated on Tuesday, April 15, 2026.
Promoting Reading and Writing Skills
“As a family-friendly group of companies in the publishing and media industry, we have been organizing this competition for three years now because we are particularly committed to actively promoting the reading and writing skills of children in our region,” says Katrin Krauß-Herkert, the group’s CFO. Even in an increasingly digital age, these remain key skills. The feedback shows just how popular the competition is: many children participated for the second or third year in a row. The competition was open to school students in grades 2 through 4.
The jury and the audience listen intently to a fourth-grader’s presentation.
On your marks, get set, read!
At 5 p.m., the “Bookworm Challenge” kicked off: After Katrin Krauß-Herkert warmly welcomed the children and their families in the main event hall of the FORUM MEDIA GROUP, children from every grade level faced a professional jury consisting of three company employees each. First, they were asked to read aloud to the audience from an age-appropriate text they hadn’t seen before—a challenge the children mastered very well despite their visible nervousness. Criteria such as reading fluency, intonation, and appropriate pace were evaluated.
The centerpiece of the competition was the second round, in which each child publicly read a story they had written themselves on the theme of “adventure.” Here, imagination ran wild: from cute animal stories, captivating hero’s journeys, and tricky treasure hunts, the creative range of ideas was just as diverse and unique as the children themselves. But the messages in the texts also moved the audience: “Courage means helping others, even when you’re afraid,” is the instructive conclusion of one adventure story. Another text tells, in a touching way, of a girl’s journey into her sick grandfather’s mind: there she defeats the creature that eats thoughts and memories, and in this way heals her beloved grandpa.
Victory ceremony and awards presentation
At the conclusion of the event, the top three achievements in each grade were recognized: In the second-grade category, Pablo Nayl (International School Augsburg) took first place. Close behind, with the same number of points, were Paula from Merching Elementary School and Izmir from the International School Augsburg, who tied for second place. Third place went to Johannes from Merching Elementary School.
Among the third graders, Elisa took first place and Sindri second (both from Mering Luitpoldstraße Elementary School). Third place went to Katharina from Willprechtszell Elementary School. In the fourth-grade category, the winner’s trophy went to Helena from the Franz-von-Assisi-Schule in Augsburg, followed by Laura (Amberieu Elementary School, Mering) and Arina (Merching Elementary School). A special prize in this grade level went to Leah (Amberieu Elementary School, Mering) for her exceptional reading skills.
The winners were honored with certificates, books, and movie vouchers sponsored by the Cineplex in Königsbrunn. But all the other children also received certificates and great participation prizes such as books or card games. Because one thing was clear: every child left the stage that evening as a winner. They all demonstrated not only linguistic and literary talent, but also a great deal of courage.
The reading adventure continues
A special treat awaits this year’s winning fourth-graders: By placing at the top of their class, they have also secured a spot in the Rotary Reading Competition in Augsburg on May 15, 2026. Those who advance from there will even move on to the grand Rotary Final, where children from all over Southern Bavaria will compete.
The FORUM MEDIA GROUP plans to host the popular competition again next year to continue offering young people the opportunity to explore and refine their love of reading and writing. We would like to thank all participants and their families, as well as the employees of the corporate group, whose dedication once again made this event something truly special this year.