Grade school students can claim free pizza every month. No tax and service charges to pay, no purchase necessary and they can order it “to go.”

The only catch? They must read a book for at least 15 minutes every day.

Not a bad deal for parents trying to convince their kids to take a break from television and video games even for a little while.

The literacy campaign is Pizza Hut Philippines’ latest advocacy. Dubbed “Book It!,” it aims to reward students for their reading accomplishments.

“I think when you give a reward that kids like, they would be more (interested to) read books. We know how important reading is in fulfilling their dreams,” says Diether Ocampo, spokesperson for Book It!

The campaign began in 1985 in the United States. It took more than a decade before the local franchise could adopt the program, but it is making up for lost time.

On its launch last year, about 8,000 Grade 1 students from Metro Manila registered.

The campaign will soon be brought to areas with Pizza Hut branches like the cities of Davao, Cagayan de Oro and Cebu. The program is linked up with the Department of Education and National Book Store Foundation.

Any school or non-government organization can “enroll” students from first to third grades in the program. Every child gets a Book It! kit that will monitor his/her progress. There are no limits to the number of enrollees.

A school or NGO can set reading goals for each class. Parents are encouraged to help a child reach the goal faster by writing down the name of the books he/she reads at home on a monitor sheet provided.

As soon as the goal is reached, the child earns a Pizza Award Certificate from the teacher. The certificate will be valid for a month after its issue date and can be presented to any Pizza Hut branch in the country for a free pizza.

“The children, no matter what station in life they’re from, will always be welcomed by the manager and the staff,” says Ocampo.

The next tough task for the kids would be choosing the toppings for their free Buddy Pan Pizza. Shall it be pepperoni, ham and cheese or bacon and cheese?

Each program will run for six months, which means six free pizzas. When a child has earned all of his/her six certificates, he/she gets an All-Star Reader Medallion from the last branch he/she visited.

The student will also get an All-Star Reader Certificate from the teacher.

Visit www.bookit.com.ph.