Big B Comics in Hamilton, Ontario, has a terrific-sounding initiative to help foster literacy, and comics reading, among students.

As the CBC reports, between now and spring break in March, students in grades kindergarten to 12 can bring their report cards to the flagship store and get a free comic from the Big B back-issue bins for each A. It's an annual program called, fittingly enough, "Free Comics For A's," which also rewards those students at the end of the school year June who have shown an improvement in their grades.

"We'll find some reason to give them a free comic book," Nicole Cartwright, the store's assistant manager, told the CBC.

The Big B website also emphasizes the dedication of the Ontario retail chain -- there are also locations in Barrie and Niagara Falls -- to education: There's a "Library Resources" section that highlights reasons for using comics as educational tools, provides a glossary of terms and recommends age-appropriate titles.