There are a variety of reading events happening each month that are great to get involved in. I love to read, so I will definitely take part in some of them. Below is a monthly list of reading events for children and adults.
Check back for reading events next month.
March
I’m really looking forward to all the reading events that are on this month. There is definitely something for everyone!
(5th) World Book Day – The events of all events when nearly everyone gets involved to celebrate books by dressing up as their favourite book characters. Don’t forget to use #Worldbookday on social media to share all your amazing reading photos. Visit https://www.worldbookday.com for more information on how to get involved.
(16th-22nd) Shakespeare Week- This event focuses on introducing Shakespeares’ plays to primary school children in a range of resources and activities that focus on the language and the characters. To find out more about this useful event, click the link here. https://www.shakespeareweek.org.uk/about/.
(20th) World Storytelling Day- A celebrated event that encourages schools, libraries and just about anyone to tell and listen to stories in a range of languages. Click the link http://www.globalstorytellingday.org to find out more information.
(21st) World Poetry Day – An event that celebrates how creative and diverse poetry is. Visit https://www.un.org/en/events/poetryday/ for more information about this event.
February reading events are now up. Which event do you hope to take part in?
(1st – 8th Feb) National Storytelling Week– A week long celebration of sharing, telling, listening, and writing stories. Download the resource packs available to teach storytelling to your class or child. Click the link here to visit this website for the resources. https://www.sfs.org.uk/national-storytelling-week
(6th Feb) Harry Potter Book Night– A themed book party to celebrate the amazing series of Harry Potter. There’s even a downloadable events kit to help you take part at https://harrypotter.bloomsbury.com/uk/harry-potter-book-night/ . Use #Harrypotterbooknight to share photos on social media and connect with others.
(7th Feb) Charles Dicken’s Birthday- What better day than on Charles Dicken’s birthday to celebrate the work of this author.
(12- 23rd Feb) Imagine Children’s Festival- A free event for children (aged from 0 to 11 years old), this festival at the Southbank Centre includes many authors, performances, and creative fun for all. To find out more, visit https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/festivals-series/imagine-childrens-festival Don’t forget to use #scimaginefest when sharing online.
(14th Feb) International Book Giving Day- This is a day to get involved and ensure that books are available for all children to read. This could be by leaving a book for a child to discover or by donating to charity. Use #bookgivingday to connect with others and share photos on social media. Click here to find out more. https://bookgivingday.com/about/
Happy New Year! It is officially 2020. A new year, a new month, and with it comes another reading events blog.
(4th Jan) World Braille day – The amazing system of Braille definitely deserves to be celebrated as reminder of the independence and accessibility it gives to many visually impaired or blind people in order to read! What a great day to celebrate Braille and spread awareness to the issues affecting the blind on the birthday of Louis Braille, the creator of the Braille system used today. To find out more visit https://www.un.org/en/observances/braille-day
(18th Jan) Winnie the Pooh Day – This day is the birthday of A.A Milne the author of the amazing Winnie the Pooh stories. Definitely a day to read the stories again to yourself or with your class / children.
December is here! It’s one of my favourite times of the year. Not many reading events this month that I’ve spotted, but here are a few productions on that are based around story books.
( on until 18th Jan) A Christmas Carol – Perfect for this time of year, a production of Charles Dicken’s A Christmas Carol is showing at the Old Vic in London. Click the link for more information https://www.oldvictheatre.com/whats-on/2019/a-christmas-carol-3
(14th – 5th Jan) Billionaire Boy – Another theatre production, but this time from David Walliam’s book Billionaire Boy. Highly popular for children, this is being performed at the Bloomsbury Theatre in London. For more information on this event, click the link https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/theatres/bloomsbury-theatre
(14th Dec) Storytelling – At the Old Vic in London, Michael Rosen will be reading a range of his work. I’ve had the opportunity to to meet Michael Rosen on a few occasions and listening and watching him perform his work is definitely an opportunity to not miss out on. Click here to find out more.https://www.oldvictheatre.com/whats-on/2019/voices-off/christmas-storytelling-3
It’s November already! I cannot believe that there are now only 2 months left in 2019. This year for me has passed by steadily as I have been working hard to appreciate each day for what it is and to not wish time way.
My reading routine has dropped a lot in comparison to last year, so I hope to read a few more books before the year comes to an end. #readinggoals.
There are not many reading events happening this month, so if you know of any, I would love to add these to the list of reading in November.
(1st – 30th) National Non-Fiction November – A day to celebrate all things factual and also the readers that have a passion for facts and information to the same level and fiction books.
To take part, you could visit your local library, arrange an author visit, or find out about your local area or a topic you’ve been meaning to find out about further. For more information visit http://fcbg.org.uk/national-non-fiction-november/
Special Mentions
(20th) Universal Children’s Day – A day to celebrate children’s rights. You can take part by wearing blue and signing a petition. You can also share and get involved on social media with #goblue.
Click the link to find out more information and to download a school activity pack. https://www.un.org/en/events/childrenday/
(3rd) National Poetry Day – A day to celebrate poetry from reading your favourite poems to discovering news ones. Don’t forget to use #nationalpoetryday on social media to share what you’re up to. nationalpoetryday.co.uk
(7th – 12th) National Libraries Week – An exciting week to celebrate the importance of libraries and how valuable their impact is. Visit librariesweek.org.uk for more information and check with your local library to see what events are happening.
(17th – 27th) 13th London Literature Festival – An exciting event filled with readings, performances, poetry and more. Held at the Southbank Centre in London. southbankcentre.co.uk
Black History Month
(18 Sep – 27 Oct) Anansi the Spider: The greatest tales ever spun – A performance at the Unicorn theatre which tells the classic West African and Caribbean tales of Anansi. www.unicorntheatre.com
Other Local Book Festivals
These include a range a guest authors and speakers.
(5th – 13th) Durham Book festival durhambookfestival.com
(4th – 13th) Cheltenham Literature Festival cheltenhamfestivals.com #cheltlitfest
(4th – 20th) Ilkley Literature Festival ilkleyliteraturefestival.org.uk
Special Mentions
(5th) World Teacher Day – The perfect day to thank and appreciate the hard work and effort of teachers for teaching us and future generations. To find out more → en.unesco.org
(Sunday 8th) UNESCO’s international literacy day – The UNESCO’s focus for international literacy day, is to highlight the importance of literacy to all communities and societies. More information can be found here at en.unesco.org
(Friday 13th) Roald Dahl Day – What better way to celebrate Roald Dahl’s creative work then by taking part in the variety of exciting activity put together at roalddahl.com. This year’s book focus is the fantastic story of Matilda, which for me is definitely worth a reread. #roalddahlday
(Friday 20th – 27th November) The Children’s Book Show – A big event aimed to encourage children to develop a love of reading. Thee event is jammed packed with a talented and diverse selection of authors and illustrators from a variety of countries. For more information visit thechildrensbookshow.com
(Friday 30th) Happy International Translation Day – A day to appreciate and celebrate the work of language professionals who translate in a variety of ways including many of the story books that I love. Visit un.org for more information.
August
(Summer holidays) Summer reading challenge – All through the summer holidays, a reading challenge is happening for children to read six books to complete the challenge. All you have to do is sign your young loved one up at their local library for free. Follow the link to find out more .https://summerreadingchallenge.org.uk/
(Friday 9th) National book lovers day – A reading day for all to enjoy a book, start a new book, or re-read a new story. Libraries or bookshops may have an event going on, so check with your local place for more information. Don’t forget to share the day with #bookloversday
Teach Healthier 