World Book Day is a global celebration of reading that takes place on April 23rd every year. In addition, there is also another day in early March that the UK celebrates it. April 23rd is also Literacy Day; it is, after all both the day Shakespeare was born, and also the day he died. Wherever you are though, the day is dedicated to promoting the love of reading and literacy, and it is celebrated by people of all ages all over the world.
This year, KiddyCharts is celebrating World Book Day with a special activity pack. The pack includes a variety of activities that are designed to encourage children to read and have fun. KiddyCharts already has its own free book club, Shelf Care to encourage reading for positive mental health – why not check it out?
We are all about encouraging reading on KiddyCharts – it is one of THE most important skills for kids to have globally. And that’s why we are providing access for as many people as we possibly can.
What does our World Book Day activity pack look like?
As always, we know you want to see what is inside the World Book Day activity pack. It includes a variety of activities that are designed to encourage kids to read and have fun on World Book Day and beyond. In fact, whatever time of year it is, these are great ideas for encouraging reading with the kids.
Reading list printable
The first activity is a reading list printable. This is a great way to help kids not down the new books that they have read. It’s a lovely graphic way of showing it, and definitely worth downloading if you want to encourage your kids in their reading.
This is a quite simple version of the reading list, if you want a more complex reading log, we do have another one on the site, as well as a reading planner too. Both of which would be additional resources for you to take a look at and for your kids to record their reading.
Design a cover for your favourite book
The second activity is a design a cover for your favourite book activity. This is a fun way for kids to show their creativity. They can use their imagination to come up with a new cover for their favourite book. Let them have fun with it, and add in lots of different kinds of materials for the book cover, from rice, to spaghetti, feathers, and glitter, with everything else in between!
If you would rather keep it less messy, we understand though! 😂
If you wanted to, you can print a few of these out too, and the kids can try lots of different book covers.
Book review
The third activity within the World Book Day activity pack a book review. This is a great way for kids to share their thoughts on a book they have read. They can write about what they liked and didn’t like about the book, and they can also give it a rating as well.
There are two pages within the book review in our activity pack asking a few questions about the book. Why not print out a few of these too, and even use them to review the books from the Shelf Care book club. We would love to hear what you think of them all.
Roll and Read game
For the fourth World Book day activity sheets, we have a roll and read game. This is a fun way for kids to practice their reading skills. They can roll the die and then read the corresponding book / do the activity.
As you can see, there are a few different activities for each of the faces of the die. All you need to do is cut out the cards, and put them face down in the corresponding piles. Turn over one of the cards when you roll that, and complete the activity / action. Alternatively, you can just choose off the sheet what you would like to do.
This is a fun, and simple way to read while having loads of fun!
World Book Day bookmarks to download and / or colour
Our final two activities for World Book Day are bookmarks of course! We do have more Dr Seuss World Book Day activities for you that include certificates and bookmarks. These are more generalised ones, for those that want to move beyond Dr Seuss 😂.
You can print and color in these bookmarks, or just print and use them, depending on which of our eight designs you would like to use.
In order to download these, click on the button or the image below and they are yours.
Overall, World Book Day is a great opportunity to celebrate the love of reading with your kids, and to encourage it for good mental health. The activities in the World Book Day activity pack are a fun and engaging way to help. So, gather your kids and enjoy some quality time together with a good book.
Why reading is important for kids mental health
As we have said, reading IS important for mental health, with a National Literacy Truist survey stating that children engaged with literacy are three times more likely to have good mental health. Studies have shown that reading can help to reduce stress, anxiety, and depression. It can also help to improve kids’ self-esteem and empathy.
When kids read, they are transported to another world. They can escape from their own problems and worries and lose themselves in a story. This can be a very therapeutic experience, especially for kids who are going through a tough time.
Reading can also help kids to learn about different cultures and perspectives. This can help them to become more understanding and tolerant of others; building that empathy.
We do have a kids mental health series on the site with activities and ideas around mental health that can be done with children, as well as resources for reading to support mental health, so do check them all out too. Here are the nursery pack, the EYFS, primary and finally the secondary one. There were created in 2021, but the exercises within them are timeless.
To sign up for our mental health series, join below:
We do hope you like all our resources and ideas here, why let us know?
Why it is important to celebrate World Book Day with your children
Finally, why should we even be bothering to celebrate World Book Day? It is a great way to show them how much YOU value reading. It is also a really wonderful excuse (!) to spend some quality time together and bond over a shared love of books.
There are many other ways that our World Book Day activity pack to use World Book Day to connect with your children. You could visit your local library, attend a book fair, or simply read a book together at home. No matter how you choose to celebrate, the most important thing is to make it fun and enjoyable for everyone involved.
Here are a few tips for celebrating World Book Day with your children:
- Visit your local library: Libraries are a great place to find books for all ages. They often have special events and activities planned for World Book Day.
- Attend a book fair: Book fairs are a great way to find new books to read. They often have special discounts and offers.
- Read a book together at home: This is a great way to bond with your children and share your love of reading.
- Make a book character costume: This is a fun activity for kids of all ages. They can dress up as their favorite book character and have a parade or party.
- Have a book-themed party: This is a great way to celebrate World Book Day with your friends and family. You can decorate your home with book-themed decorations, serve book-themed food, and play book-themed games.
No matter how you choose to celebrate World Book Day, the most important thing is to make it fun and enjoyable for everyone involved.
AND if you don’t have the time, and can’t do it. That is 100% OK too – remember as parents, and in schools, we cannot do everything, so don’t if you can’t. Just enjoy doing what you can do. THAT is 100% enough.
We hope to see you again on the site soon. If you like what you see, check out some more of our reading activities:
World Book Day Ideas on KiddyCharts
Here are some more ideas for the kids on World Book Day, including a Quiz and some fun facts about the Day for everyone!
World Book Day Quiz Cards
Quiz cards for you to use on and in the run up to World Book Day - what do the kids know about the books they have read?
World Book Day Certificate: Best Costume
Are you doing a World Book Day costume - then here's the certificate for the winner!
World Book Day : 8 of the best bookish world records
Sope of the weirdest facts about World Book Day that you'll ever hear!
Free printable reading quotes for World Book Day posters and beyond
Some fantastic free posters for you to put up on the wall for World Book Day and beyond to encourage the kids to read. Check them all out now.
And some off KiddyCharts as well:
World Book Day ideas from the internet
Here are some ideas for World Book Day from off site for you, including a load of costume ideas as we KNOW that this is a bit of a difficult one for parents out there!
Over 100 Homemade Costumes for World Book Day
Team Stein have managed to gather a load of costume ideas for you for World Book Day - over 100 so there is bound to be one that works for you.
10 World book day activities and ideas
Loads of fabulous book related ideas for you to try our for World Book Day with the kids.
World Book Day: 6 Zoo Books & a TP Roll Craft
Red Ted Art has given us some ideas for Zoo books, alongside a suitable toilet paper roll craft. Check them all out!
We have a newsletter you can sign up too as well – we commit to one new printable a week, and we generally give you more. Why not see whether you like what we produce?
Come back again when you get a second!
Helen
Helen
Helen is a mum to two, social media consultant, and website editor; and this site is (we think) the only Social Enterprise parenting magazine!Since giving up being a business analyst when juggling travel, work and kids proved too complicated, she founded KiddyCharts so she could be with her kids, and use those grey cells at the same time.KiddyCharts has reach of over 1.1million across social and the site. The blog works with big family brands (including travel) to help promote their services, as well as offering free resources to parents of kids under 10.It gives 51%+ profits to Reverence for Life, who fund a number of important initiatives in Africa, including bringing running water and basic equipment to a school in Tanzania.Helen has worked as a digital marketing consultant (IDM qualified) with various organisations, including Channel Mum, Truprint, Talk to Mums, and Micro Scooters. She loves to be creative in the brand campaigns she works on.Get in touch TODAY!