It was time to celebrate all things literary, when our schools took part in this year’s World Book Day on Thursday 5 March.

At Clenchwarton Primary, children and staff alike dressed up as their favourite fictional characters.  Harry Potter met the Gruffalo and Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III at Gaywood Primary, where each class based their celebrations around a different children’s author.  The chips were down at Heacham Infant School, where the pupils drew inspiration from ‘Supertato’, the unlikely potato superhero from the series of the same name created by author-illustrators Sue Hendra and Paul Linnet.

Meanwhile, at Heacham Junior School, children concocted their own Harry Potter-style magical potions, and designed chocolate bars for Willy Wonka’s Factory. It was ‘booknic’ time at Snettisham Primary, when pupils held their own literary version of a picnic, where a tempting selection of books replaced more regular picnic fare.  Elsewhere, there was a mystery to be solved, when the children at West Lynn Primary rose to the challenge of the ‘Masked Reader’, which tasked them with discovering the identity of a series of disguised readers.

Celebrations also took place at Walpole Cross Keys, where teachers and pupils dressed up for the occasion.  Our high schools joined in the fun too, with a host of activities, competitions, and events taking place across the day and beyond.  Marshland school library became a hub of World Book Day activity with sessions including literary-themed quizzes and bookmark designing.

For the second year running, a group of students from St Clement’s spent time reading with children at Terrington St Clement Junior School, promoting a love of books and reading for pleasure.  Jilted bride Miss Havisham met Little Red Riding Hood at Smithdon, where staff and students dressed up for World Book Day, which was celebrated as part of the school’s annual, two-week Literary Festival.  Last but by no means least, Springwood held a week-long Reading Festival, which encompassed World Book Day, and saw students across all age groups take part in a variety of different events. 

Activities at Clenchwarton included book-led English lessons, as well as a ‘Masked Reader’ challenge.  “World Book Day is one of the days children look forward to the most, so we always enjoy taking part,” said Assistant Headteacher Billy Overton.  “We have a good culture of reading at Clenchwarton, and want to continue to promote our love of reading.”

At Gaywood, the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) children focused on traditional stories, while Years 1 and 2 enjoyed Julia Donaldson’s many popular books, and Year 3 took their pick from the vast selection of classics by Roald Dahl. The Year 4 children drew inspiration from Cressida Cowell, who is best known for the How to Train Your Dragon series starring Hiccup the Viking and his dragon, Toothless; while Warhorse author Michael Morpurgo influenced Year 5; and Year 6 chose JK Rowling, creator of Harry Potter.  “We continued our tradition of celebrating different authors,” said Writing Lead Chloe Sneath. "World Book Day is important because it celebrates the diversity of stories and voices. It’s a day that encourages a love of reading, allowing children to become completely immersed in an author’s imaginary world. “Whether it’s adventure, mystery, or fantasy, authors’ stories inspire creativity within children, giving them the opportunity to think outside the box.”  “It’s also a day full of fun, where we get to bring authors’ stories to life by dressing up as our favourite characters,” she added.  “More importantly, it can spark new interests, and inspires children to develop a love of reading.”

The youngsters at Heacham Infants enjoyed creative activities throughout the day, which ended with a Reading Cafe where they were joined by parents and carers – and had the opportunity to design their own superhero.  “This year’s theme was Supertato, bringing plenty of superhero fun to our classrooms,” explained Assistant Headteacher Claire Dack. “A highlight of the celebration was our ‘Design Your Own Supertato’, where, during the Reading Cafe, children created their very own superhero character using a real potato.”  “World Book Day is an important opportunity to promote and share a love of books and reading,” she added.  “At our infant school, we believe that fostering a passion for stories at an early age helps to build imagination, creativity, and essential literacy skills. “By celebrating together in such an engaging way, we hope to inspire our children to become lifelong readers.”

At Heacham Juniors, pupils and staff arrived for the day dressed as their favourite fictional characters, while teachers shared passages from their favourite children’s books during a special, whole-school assembly. “World Book Day is incredibly important, not least this year as it is the National Year of Reading, led by the National Literacy Trust,” said Assistant Headteacher Ashley Kirwan. “Our goal is to try to help children discover a book that unlocks their love of reading or, for many children, continues their love of stories or even non-fiction.” With perfect timing, the school had recently finished upgrading its library facilities ahead of the annual event.  “We have just upgraded our school library with a load of new fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and graphic novels – just in time for World Book Day,” added Mr Kirwan.

For the Snettisham Booknic, pupils were joined by family members, carers, and friends.  “We invited families in for a ‘booknic’, which was like a picnic but with books instead of food,” explained Reading Lead Marie Woodget.  There was also the chance for all year groups to get creative with those unneeded picnic plates – as well as the opportunity to dress up as their favourite book characters for the day.  “This year, as well as the usual dressing up, we held a book-character paper place competition,” continued Mrs Woodget. “Children and staff were given a paper plate to turn into a book character.” “World Book Day is important, because it is a reminder that books and stories are fun,” she added.  “It helps children enjoy reading and discover new stories, whilst building their vocabulary, imagination, and understanding of different characters and ideas.”

All age groups at West Lynn took part in the Masked Reader – and there was also the chance to dress up.  “The Masked Reader is widely loved by the children and staff,” said English Lead Chloe Cousins.  “Each year, I record members of staff as an emoji reading an extract from a book. The children then have to guess who the member of staff is. This is made slightly trickier by me altering their voices!  “All children were encouraged to dress as their favourite book or character, and staff decided to dress up as crayons this year, from the story The Day the Crayons Quit.”  “World Book Day is important as it gives the children the opportunity to share their favourite books to read, encourages children to try different genres, and enhances book talk within the school,” she added.  “On the day, there is a huge level of excitement around books and reading for pleasure across the whole school.  “It is a great way to celebrate the wide variety of books on offer, and introduce children to new authors or series which they may not have come across before.”

At Marshland, the celebrations were set to continue beyond World Book Day itself, with a return visit from guest author Pen Avey scheduled for the next week.  “Following the recent publication of her book, Project Human, Avey will be running a specialist creative writing workshop,” said Literacy Lead Joe Clark.  “A selected group of students will have the opportunity to work closely with her to develop their own storytelling skills and learn about the professional writing process.  “Participating students will also receive a signed copy of her latest book to further foster a love of reading among participants.”  “World Book Day is an essential part of our academic calendar, serving as a yearly reminder of the significant impact reading has on a student’s development,” Mr Clark added.  “By focusing on building positivity and celebrating success through books, we aim to ensure that every student feels connected to the world of literature.”

Back at St Clement’s, there was a choice of book-themed events for the students to enjoy.  “We ran a lunchtime quiz in the library, and we had a photo competition running with students sending in photos of them reading books in unique and interesting sessions,” said Librarian Jenny Ford.  “The junior school visit was the highlight, and was very successful last year too,” she added.

Among those entering into the World Book Day spirit at Smithdon was Librarian Marie Taylor, who dressed as Miss Haversham from Great Expectations, alongside Headteacher Amanda Gibbins as Little Red Riding Hood.  “This is a tradition we have proudly continued for five years, and it’s always a fantastic way to celebrate reading across the school community,” she said.  World Book Day has become part of a wider, annual Literary Festival at Smithdon, with activities taking place across the entire week.  “Events like World Book Day are important, because they hopefully promote a love of reading in an engaging and memorable way,” added Miss Taylor.  “They encourage creativity, spark interest in new books, and show that reading is valued across the whole school community.  “Events like this also build confidence, strengthen school spirit, and reinforce our commitment to literacy.” 

The Reading Festival at Springwood featured a readathon; a Great Big Form Quiz on World Book Day itself; ‘Daily Kahoots’ focusing on reading and books with prizes awarded each day; career workshops for writing, illustration, poetry, and journalism; an all-week book swap; and a ‘Guess the Bookworms’ challenge, where students had to estimate the total number of gummy worms in a jar.  This is the second year the Reading Festival has taken place,” said Senior Assistant Headteacher Rebecca Davies-Mays.  “The inspiration came from music festivals, and for us to put on a week of events to celebrate reading and to highlight its importance.” This year’s Festival was organised by the school’s Learning Resource Centre Manager, Alan Wisniewski, with the support of Mrs Davies-Mays. “This event is really important, especially in the Year of Reading,” she added. “It highlights to students that we value reading as a school, and it engages students with reading and potential career areas it could lead to.”