Reading opens doors to new worlds, ideas, and skills. You'll explore your library, read different kinds of books, and share your love of reading with others. It's a badge that can turn any reader into a better one.
Why it's worth it
Reading lets you go places you can't travel to, learn from people who lived centuries ago, and figure out how to fix a bike or bake bread without anyone standing over you. This badge helps you find more books you'll actually love, read outside your usual favorites, and tell solid news from spin. You'll also share reading with others through service, maybe helping a younger kid discover that books can be fun. Strong readers do better in school and in almost every job, and they're rarely bored.
Start this week
- Get a library card if you don't have one, or check that yours still works.
- Ask your Scoutmaster for the name of a Reading counselor, and send them a short message with a parent copied to set up a first meeting.
- Write down the three best books you've ever read. A librarian can use that list to find more you'll like.
- Pick a how-to book on something you'd like to learn, like knots, cooking, or drawing, for requirement 4.
Requirements · 7
Every official requirement and part, numbered to match Scouting America, in plain language. Sign off against the official wording (opens in a new tab) (updated 2025).
- Requirement 1
Using a library
Tips for this section: Ask a librarian to show you how to search the catalog and find books on any topic.
- Requirement 1a
Tour a library, then discuss with your counselor how it is organized and what resources and services it offers
- Requirement 1b
Learn to search a library's card or computer catalog by author, title, and subject
- Requirement 1c
In a library catalog, find six books of four different kinds, such as poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and biography
- Requirement 1d
With help from your counselor or a librarian, try to find the six books you picked on the shelves
- Requirement 1e
Explain what a library card is, why you need one, and how to get one
- Requirement 2
Finding books to read
Tips for this section: Think of a book you loved and ask a librarian for similar ones. Check out a best books list for ideas.
Example for this section: Start with a book you loved, like a survival story, and ask a librarian or use the catalog's "similar titles" feature to find three more. Then look at an award list, like Newbery winners, and pick one that interests you.
- Requirement 2a
Name a book you enjoyed and find out what other books its author has written
- Requirement 2b
Look at one or more "best books" lists (by year, subject, or all time) and pick at least one book you'd like to read
- Requirement 3
Read four different kinds of books, for example fiction, poetry, biography, or nonfiction. For each book, respond in one of the ways in 3a-3c. Choose 1 of 3
Tip: Try a mix, like a mystery, a biography, a science book, and poetry. Jot down your thoughts after each.
For example: Four types could be a mystery, a biography of an explorer, a book of poems, and a science book about the deep sea. After each, write a short response: what it made you think about, a favorite line, and who you'd recommend it to.
- Requirement 3a
Write a review saying what you liked or didn't like, whether you'd recommend the book, and who might enjoy it
- Requirement 3b
Watch a movie made from the book and discuss with your counselor what was alike and different and which you liked better
- Requirement 3c
Give a book talk to your patrol, troop, or class
- Requirement 4
Read a nonfiction book or magazine that teaches a skill (like cooking, woodworking, game design, science experiments, or knots). With your counselor's and parent's OK, do a project from it and share how it went. A merit badge pamphlet doesn't count
Tip: Pick a how-to book on something you want to learn, like cooking or knots, and try it out.
For example: Read a beginner's cookbook, choose a recipe, and make it for your family with an adult. Or use a woodworking book to build a birdhouse. Bring the result and explain what the book taught you that you couldn't guess.
- Requirement 5
Read about the world around you in any two sources, like books, magazines, newspapers, field manuals, or the internet (with a parent's OK), on topics such as Scouting, sports, nature, or current events, and discuss what you learned with your counselor
Tip: Compare how two news sources cover the same story.
For example: Read the same news story in two places, like a newspaper and a news website. Compare the headlines, which facts each includes, and who they quote, then explain why the coverage might differ.
- Requirement 6
Reading service. Choose 1 of 5
Tips for this section: Read to younger kids, help at a library event, or collect books for a donation drive.
Example for this section: Four hours of service could be reading picture books to kids at a library story time, helping shelve books, or running a book drive with your patrol for a shelter or school that needs them.
- Requirement 6a
With your counselor's and parent's OK, spend at least four hours reading aloud to someone who is sick, blind, or homebound in a hospital or extended-care facility, then discuss it with your counselor
- Requirement 6b
With your counselor's and parent's OK, spend at least four hours volunteering at a public library or your school's library, then discuss it with your counselor
- Requirement 6c
With your counselor's and parent's OK, spend at least four hours reading stories to younger kids, one-on-one or in a group, then discuss it with your counselor
- Requirement 6d
With your counselor's and parent's OK, spend at least four hours organizing a book swap for your troop, school, or place of worship, then discuss it with your counselor
- Requirement 6e
With your counselor's and parent's OK, spend at least four hours organizing a book drive and donating the books to an organization in need, then discuss it with your counselor
- Requirement 7
Name three careers that use reading skills. Pick one and research its training, education, certification, experience, costs, job outlook, starting pay, and advancement, then discuss it and your interest with your counselor
Tip: Ask a librarian, teacher, or editor about their work.
Places to visit
Ask an adult to set it up, and go with your family, den, patrol, or crew.
Your public library
A librarian can show you the catalog, databases, and spaces most visitors never notice, and may have service opportunities.
How: Go with a parent or buddy and ask at the desk whether a librarian has a few minutes for a tour. Calling ahead helps.
A bookstore author event or library book talk
Hearing an author talk about how a book was written changes how you read it.
How: A parent can check the library or bookstore event calendar for free author visits and go with you.
Where it can lead
- LibrarianHelps people find information and runs programs for all ages; usually needs a master's degree.
- EditorShapes books, articles, and websites so they're clear and accurate.
- TeacherHelps students become stronger readers and writers.
- AuthorWrites books; many start by reading widely and writing every day.
- Library technicianManages collections and helps patrons; often trained through a two-year program.
Ask yourself
- What kind of book do you reach for first, and why do you think it pulls you in?
- Which book outside your usual taste surprised you the most?
- How did reading a how-to book compare with learning from a video or a person?
- How do you decide whether a news story is trustworthy?
- What book would you hand to a younger Scout, and what would you tell them about it?
Good questions to ask a librarian
- How do you find the right book for someone who says they don't like reading?
- What's the best way to search the catalog when I only know a topic?
- What library services do most people not know about?
- How do you tell whether a source is reliable?
- What books do teens ask for most right now?
Helpful reads
- Earning a merit badge, step by step, From picking a badge to getting the final signature: how to find a counselor, set up meetings safely, work the requirements, and keep your progress., Youth · Families · 6 min read
- Contacting counselors, experts, and organizations, Email and phone scripts, who to ask for, how to follow up, and how to say thanks, with a parent copied every time., Youth · Families · 7 min read
- Choosing your next merit badge, How to pick a badge you'll actually finish: start with what you care about, balance Eagle-required and just-for-fun badges, and make the most of camp., Youth · Families · 6 min read
For leaders & parents
- Partner with a local library for a reading-related service project.
- Encourage scouts to share book recommendations at troop meetings.
People & places that can help
- Merit badge counselor — Talk with them early; they can explain what's expected.
- Public library and librarians — Your best guide for finding books and doing service.
- American Library Association (opens in a new tab) — Book lists and reading resources.
- Read.gov (opens in a new tab) — Reading lists and author interviews from the Library of Congress.
- News Literacy Project (opens in a new tab) — Tools for telling fact from opinion and spotting misinformation.
- Poets.org (opens in a new tab) — Thousands of poems and poet biographies from the Academy of American Poets.
- Project Gutenberg (opens in a new tab) — Free e-books of classic novels and other works whose copyrights have expired.
Pairs well with
Into this? Explore more
Tips, examples, and questions are ideas from experienced leaders, not extra requirements. Your unit leader or counselor decides when a requirement is complete.