“There is so much more to a book that just reading”

~ Maurice Sendak, author of ‘Where the Wild Things Are’.

Books and reading were the stars of the show when the Whole School celebrated World Book Day on Thursday 5 March. On the Saar Campus the build up to the day saw children designing some amazing book characters, some of which will be used as the central figures in English language books for children at the Ka Narng Ket school in Cambodia. After-school book readings were also held in the library throughout the week, with different guest readers each day.

World Book Day itself began with ‘The Big Read’, a wonderful whole school event on the Tiger Turf where over 1000 children enjoyed paired reading, story reading from a stage and a storytelling finale.

For the rest of the day the children had to have their favourite books with them at all times and listen out for the announcement to ‘drop everything and read’. Maisie from 6B said, “The Year 2 children really loved how we read to them.” Mr Marshall from Year 5, who told the story of ‘The Pied Piper’ from the stage, added, “It is always a pleasure to read to the children.”

At the Senior School students of all ages competed in a ‘Catch your teacher reading’ competition. In teams, they hunted down forty teachers who were hidden in classrooms and outdoor areas around the school. The team who found the most teachers won. Over a hundred students took part in the event, helping to promote interest in books and reading. Two creative competitions inspired by books were also opened to students in Years 7, 8 and 9. Students have been asked to submit short stories created on the World Book Day website. Here, students are guided through the writing of a short story through video tutorials by famous writers. The English Department are also running a competition for an artistic or photographic image inspired by a book. The winners for both competitions will be announced next week and work displayed on the English corridor.