This year was a special World Book Day. Not only was it the 25th anniversary of its establishment in the UK and Ireland, it was especially important to us as it marks a return to celebrating in person. Two years ago Sophie Hannah opened the library for us and soon after we went into lockdown. Last year we celebrated online with a wonderful day at home, and this year it was a joy to be able to celebrate in person.

Early in February the preparations began, and Mrs J, our librarian, began creating the most amazing flowers, mushrooms and teacup towers to decorate the English classroom as a Mad Hatter’s Tea Party. One young student whispered to me as he walked in on the day “it’s just like in the film!”.

Mrs. J. writes, “It was really the whole school community that pulled together to make this year’s World Book Day a huge success. I would like to thank all of the parents who contributed prop making materials, props, food, and prizes; students who contributed to the prop making process; teachers and staff who gave me latitude to try something new. It was a real COMMUNITY effort. The Bookopoly reading challenge leading up to World Book Day was an enormous success as well. We had almost 300 books read for the challenge. Students are already excited for next year’s challenge!”

Assembly and the morning

The day started with assembly (slides below) and a rap from MC Grammar, star of Wonder Raps on Sky Kids, encouraging us to think that reading is amazing! Wilf from Year 4 reported "In assembly Mrs J announced the winners of the Bookopoly competition. I read 17 books so I got entered in the raffle. I won a nerf gun and I felt happy and surprised! I liked the competition because it was fun reading books that I don't normally read".

Landmark World Book Day Bookopoly winners

We then moved to book related activities that had been set up around the hall, and the whole school had the opportunity to work together. Here are some comments from our students:

Afra Reception "I enjoyed making the stickman because it was really cute. I enjoyed wearing my outfit and my pink wig (even though it was a bit itchy!)"

Elodie Year 1 "My favourite thing was making pictures about Willy Wonka's chocolate factory"

Bodhi Year 1 "There were a few things I liked. I liked making the bookmarks and I enjoyed putting googly eyes on my stickman"

Noah Year 6 "I liked being able to work with the seniors because I haven't got to work with them in a while. I also liked writing the 'Six Word Stories' because it made me think about how to make someone wonder and predict what the end of the story would be".

Emily Year 6 "I enjoyed making the paper-chains. First you had to choose what genre of book you liked the best (mine was horror) which related to different coloured strips of paper. Then you had to write your favourite book on the piece of paper. We passed it to the teachers and they joined it to the paper chain. We ended up with a really long multicoloured paper chain!"

A slide show of the day’s activities

The Book Nook

This year we wanted to create a quiet space so that those who wanted to could sit and read. Mrs Bordoli-Marsh’s classroom was transformed into a magical space, with soft lighting and comfortable beanbags. It was one of the most popular parts of the day! Jasmine Year 5 "My favourite part of world book day was hanging out in 'The Book Nook'. There were lots of beanbags on the floor which made me feel really chilled. The blinds were closed and there were disco lights which made it feel funky! It felt nice to get away from the crowds and read quietly"

Mystery Book Swap

Dorothy Year 4 "At the end of the day we did a 'Mystery Book Swap'. We had to wrap up a book from home and write why you liked it and what genre it is. Then we had a giant pile of wrapped up books. We got to choose a wrapped up book that we liked the look of. Then we all unwrapped them together - I got 'Lightning Girl' by Alesha Dixon to take home"

The Fabulous Costumes!

Jasper Year 6 "World Book Day was fun because I won the costume competition. It took many hours of hard work to make my costume (I went as Grandpa from 'Grandpa's Great Escape' and made a giant wearable spitfire out of cardboard). It was cool seeing everyone in their costumes and the seniors and teachers dressed up too. All the costumes were really creative"

The Mad Hatter’s Tea Party

This year we decided to combine a Mad Hatter’s Tea Party with discussions about books and censorship to celebrate the day. Mrs J worked so hard and, with some help from students and parents, created an incredible space up in the senior English room. Each year group had a lesson where they ate delicious food provided by parents and Mrs J, with juice instead of tea, and sorted through a pile of books discussing why they might be banned and what we think of censorship and guidance as to what to read. The setting was atmospheric, the discussion was animated, and the food was appreciated. Students dressed for the occasion, and we had many characters from the story including the mad hatter, Alice, the white rabbit, the caterpillar, the king and queen of hearts, and even Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee. I was so impressed with the engagement of the students. Thanks to Mrs J for her creativity!

All in all a fabulous day, and we are already looking forward to next year!