Celebrate National Read a Book Day

September 5, 2023 by Sarah White Leave a Comment

September 6 is National Read a Book Day, though in my household I think that’s every day! And indeed this is a holiday that everyone can celebrate, at home or in the classroom. Here are a few ideas for celebrating reading today and every day.

Make a reading nook: in your home or classroom, having a little nest or special place for reading can be a lot of fun. It needs good light, a comfy place to sit or lie down, a shelf or table where you can put snacks and drinks (at home at least; a shelf might make more sense in a classroom) and a good stash of notebooks, writing utensils and bookmarks.

Print some bookmarks: speaking of bookmarks, it might be time to refresh your supply of bookmarks. I’ve done a few posts about printable bookmarks (for example, here and here) that last bunch is all coloring bookmarks, which is great to add another activity to your reading day festivities. If you’re making bookmarks for the home you can search for bookmarks on a theme, such as robots or ice cream or mandalas, which can be fun for all ages to have their own bookmarks they color themselves.

Book bingo: Maybe now is the time to start a reading challenge or filling out a book bingo card. There are tons of different options for kids and adults, or you can make your own based on ideas from your classroom or family. Some things to include might be different kinds of books to read (chapter books, graphic novels, audiobooks, etc.) or places to read (outside, in bed, at a restaurant, and so on). If you want a printable reading bingo card to use, check out this one from Childhood 101, or this summer reading bingo printable from Imagination Soup.

How do you celebrate reading every day? I’d love to hear about it!

[Image by StockSnap from Pixabay]

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Elf on the Shelf Ideas for the Classroom

Have you read?

Reflecting on the Past Year with Kids

I’m in deep denial about the fact that new year is almost upon us again! It’s been the fastest and the longest year at the same time, and I can look back and see some good things as well as some things I wish had gone differently.

Doing a year in review with your kids — whether in the classroom or at home — is a good way to capture some of their memories and the things they really liked about the year gone by.

There are a lot of different printable year in review worksheets you can use if you want to make this super easy. Here are links to a few (often part of larger posts about NYE celebrations with kids that are worth a read, too):

Teach Beside Me has lots of fun printables fro the end of the year, including a year in review that covers favorite memory, funniest memory and the best book they read, among other topics.
NurtureStore‘s version has space for a self-portrait and prompts like favorite toy, best day out this year and future dream job.
Remember favorites, their “best idea” of the year and have room for setting goals for next year with this one from The Keele Deal.
The year in review from Yes We Made This has room for drawing or writing and includes things like something they learned, a memory they made and a place they visited.

Of course you could pretty easily make your own year in review for the whole family to do that asks questions based on what you most want to remember. (Favorite video game? Best friend? Favorite family memory?)

And if after the year in review you’re ready to look ahead a bit, Mrs. Merry has new year’s resolution printables to inspired kids to look ahead and set goals for things they want to try. You can totally fill this one out as a grownup, too.

[Photo: Mrs. Merry]

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Have you read?

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