As we turn the final page of 2024, we’re excited to share the highlights with you in the first-ever Beanstack Year in Review. From our annual Summer Reading Challenge to the Reading Culture Awards, we spent the year supporting schools and libraries as they worked hard to build strong reading cultures and foster a love of reading in their communities.
Guided by our core values—love, inclusion, and awesomeness—we introduced exciting new features, shared best practices, and celebrated incredible milestones, like record-breaking student participation.
None of this would have been possible without the passionate librarians and educators who led with their hearts and transformed lives through the power of reading. Thank you for all that you do!
2024 by the Numbers
As we kick off a new year, we’re taking a moment to step back and look at the big picture. Our school and library communities had some big wins—these impressive numbers tell the story.
- Beanstack users logged a record 2.3 billion minutes in 2024.
- Collectively, Beanstack users logged 76.6 million books!
- Our client success team had 2,935 client meetings and led over 30 webinars.
New Features and Innovations
From small improvements to big new features, our goal in 2024 was to make Beanstack more helpful and user-friendly than ever! Here are our top new features of the year:
- Lexile Insights for Teachers - Offers a more in-depth look into student's reading behavior.
- Reading Integrity Suite - Provides tools to promote honest logging while preserving students' reading independence.
- New Community Goal Tracker - Helps Beanstack administrators rally their readers to achieve a common goal.
- A New Look for Reading Logs - We modernized our design so readers and administrators can track logging in a stylish new calendar.
Let’s talk about two of the biggest page-turners of the year—our top reading challenges! Using competition, recognition, and proven gamification principles, Beanstack challenges motivate individuals and communities to read more. Our two annual challenges encouraged participating schools and libraries to set ambitious goals and promote healthy reading habits.
You Dove into Summer Reading
Summer 2024 was a blast! This year, more than 250 public libraries and 4,800 schools participated. Together, millions of readers logged over 60 million minutes and 120 thousand books.
💡Fun fact: Readers completed 68.33% more activity badges in bingo challenges.
And Warmed up with Winter Reading
Since January 2018, our annual Winter Reading Challenge has inspired libraries and schools across the country to welcome the new year with reading, and this year was no different! 4,458 schools and libraries joined the fun! Participants read over 45 million minutes and over 50 thousand books.
💡Fun fact: Challenges on sites with community goals averaged double (+104.51%) the amount of minutes logged.
We Celebrated Schools as They Reached New Heights
The Reading Culture Awards recognize and reward schools as they reach participation benchmarks in Beanstack throughout the year. Schools worked hard to inspire students and build strong reading cultures in 2024; the results were incredible!
- 957 schools achieved 75% student participation, earning the coveted Trailblazer status and a $100 gift card for their school.
- 1,500 schools reached Pathfinder status, with 50% student participation.
- 2,129 schools made it to Igniter status, with 25% student participation.
Thanks for a Great 2024!
From the millions of minutes logged to the innovative features introduced, every achievement was made possible by the educators, librarians, and readers who embraced our mission with enthusiasm and heart.
Looking ahead to 2025, we’re excited to continue supporting you with new features, initiatives, and challenges!