Every year the mention of book day fills me partly with excitement as it involves dressing up, which my children love and they are buzzing with it, but partly with dread as it is me who has to figure out how to create a costume that doesn’t take ages and doesn’t cost me a fortune!
Apart from stressing over the fancy dress for weeks, the main purpose of World Book Day is to provide every child and young person in the country with a book of their own.
It is actually celebrated across the world on the 23rd April which is the designated day by UNESCO but in the UK, the day is recognised on the first Thursday in March!
This year, the campaign is to get everyone sharing a story on World Book Day … and of course every day! Spending just 10 minutes a day reading and sharing stories with our children can make a crucial difference to their learning! You can read anywhere together! In the park, on the train, on the sofa, in the bath, really anywhere!
Over 15 million £1 World Book Day book tokens will be given to children and young people across the UK and Ireland on World Book Day! All you have to do is take your voucher to your local bookshop (we have ours ready) and swap it for one of the TWELVE exclusive, new and completely free World Book Day books. If you have another favourite in mind, you can use your token to get £1 off any full price book instead.
If you’re wondering what local book stores are participating, click here
Local Usbourne Book Organisers accept book tokens and we have the lovely Boggledybook Children’s Bookshop and Millhouses Bookshop too.
World Book Day have recently run a competition to reveal the nation’s top 100 stories to share. If you’re looking for a new bedtime storybook or a birthday present, hopefully these will give you inspiration and will be shared together for years to come!
Top 25 Picture Books (not in any order)
Each Peach Pear Plumb
Grandad’s Island
The Gruffalo
The Tiger who Came to Tea
Oi Frog
And another 20 more here
Top 25 books for 5 – 8 year olds (not in any order)
Charlotte’s Web
Finn Family Moomintroll
Revolting Rhymes
The Hundred Mile-An-Hour Dog
Winnie-the-Pooh
And another 20 more here
Top 25 books for 9 – 12 year olds (not in any order)
Bad Girls
Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone
Stig of the Dump
The Christmasaurus
War Horse
And another 20 more here
Top 25 books for Teens (not in any order)
Everything, Everything
Of Mice and Men
The Art of Being Normal
The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas
The Lie Tree
And another 20 more here
So, now down to the fancy dress costumes!! Book Aid International have provided a whole host of dress up guides from the quick to make, to the more elaborate! The best thing is that many of them have ‘how to videos’!! To see the 43 different costumes click here and feel free to leave them a donation!
Image Credit Book Aid International
Local Events
Between 6th and 10th March, Nostell Priory will be celebrating World Book Day! As well as being a place to swap your token for one of the twelve books, you can follow the Ten Little Bookworms Family Trail in the garden, snuggle up for story time and join in the book-themed spring craft activities through the gardens entrance.
Little Learners Doncaster are hosting a themed messy play event to celebrate World Book Day on Saturday 9th March. The event is open to children from 5 months to 5 years old, but older children are also able to come along and join in teh tea party fun! Boggledybook Children’s Bookshop will be there too with their range of books.
Join Baby Bunnies at Armthorpe Leisure Centre on March 7th and dress like a caterpillar or beautiful butterfly or another of your favourite characters. There will be fruit tasting, story telling, paints and games.
Scribble, Doodle and Draw at The Point on the 9th March, learn how to draw like a comic artist.
If you know of any other local events please do let me know so that I can add to the events calendar.
