This year, we will be celebrating World Book Day on the 7 March, our theme is ‘Words Glorious Words’ and we can’t wait to see what word you choose to dress up as!
World Book Day was created by UNESCO on 23 April 1995 as a worldwide celebration of books and reading.
In countries around the world it is celebrated on the anniversary of that date, but in the UK it is generally marked on the first Thursday of March.
Spending just 10 minutes a day reading and sharing stories can make a crucial difference to your future success and is fun for all involved.
Thatās why World Book Day continues to encourage children and young people to read for pleasure through its work with authors, illustrators, publishers, bookshops and libraries.
Building on this, this week we are asking you to think critically about the following articles:
- Article 17 (access to information from the media) – Every child has the right to reliable information from a variety of sources, and governments should encourage the media to provide information that children can understand. Governments must help protect children from materials that could harm them.
- Article 29 (goals of education) – Education must develop every childās personality, talents and abilities to the full. It must encourage the childās respect for human rights, as well as respect for their parents, their own and other cultures and the environment.
- Article 31 (leisure, play and culture) – Every child has the right to relax, play and take part in a wide range of cultural and artistic activities.
Try one or more of the activities below:
Activity 1Ā
Do you have a favourite place to read? Can you think of some words to describe that place? If you have a reading corner in your classroom, have a talk about what makes it special.
Activity 2Ā
Can you create a story map of your favourite book? Think about the order of the story, draw, or write words to describe the main parts of the story. Can you retell the story to a friend using your map?
Activity 3Ā
Listen to this World Book Day song. How many books and characters did you hear mentioned? Can you create your own song/story or poem about reading or your favourite books.
Activity 4
Talk to someone you live with about what their favourite book was when they were your age. Have you read the book?
Find a copy online or in a library and enjoy it together.
Activity 5Ā
There are lots of ways in which books andĀ reading support your rights. Look particularly at Articles 17, 29 and 31. Design a chart or diagram with these rights as headings and then ask everyone in your class to fill in their thoughts about how books and reading support each article.
