The Children’s Book Week theme for 2015 is Books Light Up Our World. Book Week runs from 22-28 August. Here are 10 ideas and links to help make it the best Book Week ever. [Thanks to www.schoolreadathon.com.au and the amazing kids featured for the pic above.]
1) Discover books that will get kids fired up about reading – the CBCA Awards shortlist as well as the YABBA children’s choice awards lists. I have been lucky enough to have Two Wolves shortlisted for both awards this year and My Life & Other Stuff I Made Up shortlisted for the YABBAs.
2) Join our 2015 Room to Read World Change Challenge and win free author talks from Jacquie Harvey, Oliver Phommavanh and myself as well as books from all the major publishers. Children’s and teen authors are partnering with schools and students across Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong to raise $40,000 for 40,000 books for kids in the world’s poorest countries. Make a difference in Book Week 2015.
3) Enter the My Life Short Story Competition. Write a 500-word funny short story and enter my new short story competition for the chance to win $1000 cash and $1000 worth of books for your school. :)))
4) Here are some Book Week activity ideas on the Children’s Book Council of Australia site. And some more on The Book Chook blog.
5) You could book an author (or harass your teacher-librarian to book an author) to speak at your school. Here’s a list of agencies. Most authors are already booked for Book Week but if your celebration falls outside the official Book Week dates, you might get lucky.
6) Run a Book Trailer-Making Competition. Each year I am the ambassador for the LitVids Book Trailer Competition for Mackay Council and each year the student entries get better and better. Here are my tips on making a great trailer over on the Australian Writer’s Centre blog.
7) Use my Story Scrapbook transmedia brainstorming tool to find bookish inspiration, explore videos, images and music based on the theme, ‘Books Light Up Our World’ or dream up a new story of your own.
8) Jump-start writing and creativity. Try some activities in the My Life& Other Stuff I Made Up teachers’ kit and lots of visual / aural creative ideas in the Two Wolves kit.
9) Check out the Teacher-Librarians’ Children’s Book Week wiki or Audrey Nay’s Book Week Pinterest page. Lots of good ideas for Books Light Up Our World activities, and a chance for you to share what you are doing.
10) Connect with me on FACEBOOK, TWITTER , INSTAGRAM and YOUTUBE. Let’s talk stories, create things and share the best books we’ve ever read.
