Book Week – again?

Here is advanced warning that Book Week is coming in August. Love it or hate it, it will be here before you know it and all of a sudden parents and teachers alike will be expected, by their own self-inflicted pressure, to produce a dramatic costume of epic proportions that stands out from all the rest. Of course, if you have a child in year levels 5 or 6, they will want to turn up as a character that supports them wearing their normal everyday clothes such as Greg Hefley from ‘Diary of a wimpy kid’.

The reason for the advanced warning is that across the country every year, I see less and less actual book costumes, rather, we see movie characters, Disney princess costumes, lots of Elsa dresses, and I even spotted some Minecraft costumes last year – is this missing the point of the original intent of Book Week?

The history of book week

Book Week was founded in 1913 by the American librarian Franklin K. Matthiews, who decided he wanted to promote higher standards in children’s books as he travelled the country. So, he proposed a children’s Book Week. It didn’t take long for Australia to cotton on and the first children’s Book Week here was in 1945. At the time, children’s books were few and Australian authors were largely unknown to the world.

Across the globe 130 million books have been published to date, and an avid reader, in their lifetime, will read about 6000 of them. My guess is that no-one wants to waste time reading ones they don’t like!

This year let’s get on board promoting exceptional books.

What better way than celebrating an author who has worked hard creating an important message, than with a dress up?

Now, before you teachers and parents reach for the sewing machine and spend the next 3 months creating something that would best be seen in a West-End Theatre Production, Let’s look at the guiding principles of what we as educators are aiming to achieve.

1. The purpose of Book Week is to honour our wonderful books, authors, and illustrators.

2. The purpose of Book Week is for children to inspire each other to read and sow seeds for a love of literacy.

3. The purpose of Book Week is to provide children and their families with a wider sense of what books are available.

4. The purpose of Book Week is to have a bit of fun – where children see their teachers in a different light and mums and dads/guardians/caregivers, have a bit of fun creating a simple costume with their child.

Pay heed to what Book Week is NOT:

1. An opportunity to create the best costume ever, causing other parents or teachers to feel inadequate because they didn’t dedicate hours of their life to their child’s creation.

2. An opportunity to drag out the Cinderella, Elsa, or Minecraft costume because it is easier and a great reason to use the expensive ‘consumer product’ in the wardrobe.

3. An opportunity to strongly encourage your child to dress up as your favourite book character because it is the only one that springs to mind, or that you would love your child to become passionate about things that are important to you too.

Professor Pamela Snow and Associate Professor Tanya Serry (2022) from Latrobe University, Melbourne, suggest that reading in the early years of schooling, helps students to engage in educational texts and is a strong predictor of a child’s educational and vocational trajectory. Reading also helps children to grow into adults who can engage in the economic and social aspects of adulthood, and it helps to develop positive behavioural, social, and emotional skills. Dr Nathaniel Swain (2022) says learning to read builds a thirst in children to keep learning and a bonus, is that it improves writing, speaking and listening skills.

Additionally, reading enhances creativity, supports a healthy self-image, develops empathy and problem-solving skills. There is no greater joy than having the ability to curl up on a Sunday, rainy afternoon, and immerse yourself in a good book with a steaming cup of hot chocolate.

In 2021 Adult learning Australia said that 44% of Australians do not have the literacy skills they need for everyday life.

According to the OECD 40-50% of adults have literacy standards below the international rate needed to participate well in work. No wonder the Government are concerned when PISA cites our literacy standards continue to decline.

Let’s all get on board with this year’s Book Week – not because we want to show off our sewing and hot glue gun skills, but because we want our children to be inspired to read and enjoy this beautiful gift we have at our fingertips. Long term, literacy skills benefit all of society.

This year the theme of Book Week is Read, Grow, and Inspire which is a pretty broad theme. If you want 2023 to be the year that you want to get back to the real meaning of Book Week, then I suggest you so start thinking and reading right now.

For those of you who, for whatever reason, feel a bit stuck, here are some simple ideas to get you started. Remember it isn’t about the costume, it is about getting another child to read the book. Oh, and don’t forget to attach a copy of the book to the costume so everyone can be encouraged to read it too.

· Goodnight moon by Margaret Wise Brown – blue and white stripped pyjamas and some bunny ears.

· The snowy day by Ezra Jack Keats – red clothes and a red hat and cotton wool snowballs.

· The very hungry caterpillar by Eric Carle – alternate light and dark green paper circles stapled to a green top, a red hat, and some rosy cheeks.

· Where the wild things are by Maurice Sendak – some big shoes and some big gloves, 2 paper white horns and a brown beard painted on in face paint.

· Harold and the purple crayon by Crockett Johnson – blue clothes and a purple crayon.

· Charlie and the chocolate factory by Roald Dahl – checked shirt, a stripy jumper, light pants, a chocolate bar and a golden ticket.

· Stuart Little by E.B. White – red jumper, brown pants, white mouse ears and converse shoes.

· Alice’s adventures in wonderland by Lewis Carroll – a blue dress, a white apron, white tights.

· The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien – a red jacket, a waistcoat, a stick for a staff, and pointy ears.