A World Book Day at bedtime
BOOKISHNESS was celebrated at St Mary & Michael Catholic Primary School yesterday as pupils donned pyjamas for World Book Day.
A day of reading-themed activities was arranged in bedtime-themed costume.
English co-ordinator and deputy head teacher Alex Mercer said: ‘We wanted to celebrate World Book Day because reading is so important.
‘Guernsey already does a book week. We had some authors in for that, but this is a big event around the world.’
World Book Day is a global celebration of reading which aims to give every child a book to own.
With more than 100 countries participating, it is the biggest celebration of its kind.
‘We went for a bedtime theme this year,’ said Mr Mercer.
‘Most years we do a favourite character costume, which can become a cliche and be quite onerous for parents finding things to wear. This was a lot less demanding – children could just roll out of bed if they wanted to.
Students could enjoy comfortably the pleasures of reading and all things fictional.
‘Activities with reading themes are scheduled all day. Teachers are swapping classes to read stories and a book swap within classrooms will allow students to read something different.’
Now in its 23rd year, the day aims to offer an appreciation of reading.
‘For the last half hour of the day parents are invited to come and read or be read to by their children. So a mass book read will be happening.’
Participating schools received book tokens and age-ranged resource packs.
Florrie Cooper, 10, said: ‘I like reading a lot. I’ve been reading one by Clare Balding called the Racehorse Who Wouldn’t Gallop. I try to read as often as I can.’
‘After school we are getting £1 book tokens to spend at a bookshop.’
Dressed in a Star Wars onesie, Jake Van der Linden, 11, said: ‘Yoda is my favourite fictional character, I’ve seen all the Star Wars films. I like the battles most and would side with the Rebel Alliance. My dad and brothers like Star Wars too.’
‘I finished a book last night called the Beast of Buckingham Palace, it’s an adventure book and was really good. The book I got in the swap looks good too. To swap we went around the classroom and got the ones we wanted.’
