World Book Day is wonderful event to celebrate your child’s love of reading and show appreciation for the authors that bring characters and stories to life. As schools celebrate World Book Day with a range of reading activities, alongside ‘dressing up as a story character’, today is a great opportunity to share your child’s favourite stories and encourage your child to enjoy a variety of genres. Below are some examples of how you can celebrate World Book Day at home this week, whist including some exciting learning activities:
1. Read your favourite story
Why not take a few moments today to read your favourite children’s book? Whether your child can read their own favourite story independently, or benefit from some adult guidance, it is a great way to share your love of reading by curling up with a good book and warm cup of hot chocolate at the end of the day.
2. Write your own book review
Does your child love adventure stories or fairy tales? Learning phonics and beginning to sound out the initial letters to make words can be a very exciting time during the primary years. It is also a wonderful time to begin exploring different genres. Whether your child gravitates towards fantasy fiction, sci-fi, or prefers to get stuck into a good factual book about their favourite dinosaurs, why not encourage them to write about their favourite elements and consider what they enjoyed the most about their chosen book?
3. ….or create an exciting video review
Moving forwards from writing a formal book review, your child could create their own ‘vlog’ or video review about what makes their particular story exciting. You could show your child some examples of news reporters and discuss using exciting adjectives to engage their audience while expressing what makes their story stand out from all of the rest.
4. Get crafty with art supplies
Is your child a budding artist? There are numerous ways to help your child express a love of reading! Your child could draw, paint or even create a collage of their favourite character. Alternatively, your child could create an artistic representation of a setting from their favourite story book. This would also be a great opportunity to discuss their story and why they have chosen a particular scene from their chosen book.
5. Design your own book cover
As well as getting stuck into artistic activities, encouraging your child to design their own book cover is a creative way to express your child’s interest in their favourite story. By combining their enjoyment for art and reading, your child can re-live their favourite book by including artistic detail about the main characters and scenes, while creating a front cover that they can be proud of!
6. Visit the library
Visiting the library is a great way to encourage your child to explore a range of genres. Catering to various age ranges and reading abilities, there will always be a suitable story for your child to choose from. Local libraries often arrange events and creative activities for children to participate in, as well as getting to socialise with their peers.
7. Create your own book mark
Why not encourage your child to create their own book mark? Your child could base their book mark on their favourite story, book character or have a more personalised design that they can keep when reading their next story book! Creating your own bookmark is a great way to celebrate the events of World Book Day in a relaxed and fun environment.
8. Become an author for a day!
As well as being an avid reader, could your child be a budding writer? If your child loves writing and creating their own stories, World Book Day could be the perfect time for your child to create their own short story! From designing their book cover and considering their blurb, encourage your child to create their own fiction or non-fiction book. If your child prefers comics to stories, why not encourage them to write their own comic strip to share with their friends?
9. Create your own story quiz
“Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn”.
Is your child an expert on their favourite story? One way to share their love of reading could be through creating their own story quiz! This could also be a great way to encourage your child to use their computing skills and create their own PowerPoint as well as helping them to recall their favourite book.
10. Dress up as your favourite character and role play
A much-loved favourite for World Book Day involves dressing up as your favourite story character! Which character does you child most admire? Your child is sure to have heaps of fun and enjoy the day whilst acting out their favourite story. Whether you child is celebrating World Book Day at school or at home, your child will relish the opportunity to get into the role of their favourite book character!
