Book Week 2020
We are delighted to announce the winners of this year's Book Week Parent & Staff competition. Using the examples above, our adult college community were invited to come up with their own clickbait, or as we called them - LitBait!, designed to trick others into reading a book by the plot.
After much deliberation, Jacob Martin, Assistant Head of College, chose the following two winners:
Both these people will receive a $30 Kinokuniya voucher!
Thanks to everyone who submitted an entry. There were some hilarious suggestions as the special mentions below indicate:
During Book Week I connected with my colleagues on social media in the TL community around the world to identify great TED talks about reading to share with staff and parents. I curated some very powerful ones which convincingly espoused the importance of reading
The first is Rebecca Bellingham (2015) talking about Why we should all be reading aloud to children even when they can read independently. This talk demonstrates the magic of reading aloud and reminds us all why reading aloud is so essential and how reading helps us make powerful connections.
The second is Jessica Wise (2012) discussing How fiction can change reality and about how reading and stories can be an escape from real life, a window into another world and talks about how popular fiction can spark dialogue and shape culture.
The third is The danger of a single story and is by novelist Chimamanda Adichie (2012) who tells the story of how she found her authentic cultural voice. She warns that if we hear only a single story about another person or country, we risk a critical misunderstanding.
In the fourth one author, Jacqueline Woodson, shares about what reading slowly taught her about writing.
The fifth is Lisa Bu (2013) talking about the magic of books and How books can open your mind.
Our final book week special was not a Ted Talk, but a beautiful story about the restorative powers of books. You may like to share this one with your children. Winning an Oscar in 2012, it started as a book idea but evolved into this animated short film that appeals to all ages. It next morphed into a state-of-the-art, app and only after all this high tech treatment did it finally become the picture book the idea originally started as. So it has an interesting story itself but also portrays a very strong message about the importance of books - so hence the best possible end to this exciting week!
As Ms Siti's video and the photo collection below will testify, Book Week was too much fun! So great to have so many people come on board with our celebrations. We are looking forward to going bigger and better next year and have already had our first planning meeting to reflect on what went well and the sorts of things we can do add even more magic and excitement to the event.
Click here for the Book Week Feedback Survey. Let us know how we can improve the celebrations.
World Book Day
World of Stories
Thursday 5 March was World Book Day. You'll find lots of great reading resources and ideas here their website. Including:
Audiobooks of fabulous books. Click here to access the titles below until 29 March.
Below is TOP 25 BOOKS FOR TEENS as voted by the World Book Day followers. A great potential reading list.
Click here to access the following podcasts where World Book Day interviewers chat with well-known and up-and-coming authors on a whole host of bookish topics including what reading is power means to them
KEY FOCUS ON:
- Reading for empathy
- Includes creative challenges set by these amazing authors & illustrators
From books to help you find your voice to stories that stay with you long after the final page, consider choosing to read a title from their POWER LIST - made up of empowering books for you to add to your TBR pile. These are the books that will change the way you think. Happy reading!
Or tune in to watch Stanley Tucci reading the Official World Book Day Bedtime Story, Roald Dahl's The Witches from on the Roald Dahl Facebook page.
This year's story - The Veldt by Ray Bradbury
One of the activities most enjoyed by students and staff alike is the story day. Each Book Week we choose a short story that is broken up in 6 different sections, each one to be read progressively through the day until the story ends in Period 6.
This year I chose The Veldt by Ray Bradbury (author of Fahrenheit 451) first published in 1950. The rise in the popularity of television had a direct influence on this story. At the time The Veldt was written, many American families were acquiring their first television sets, and no one was sure exactly how this new technology would impact the relationships among family members. Some people were afraid that watching too much television would lead to the total breakdown of the family unit.
With the current introduction of BYOD into our school, I feel we are dealing with similar issues. Many of our students don’t seem to be able to go an hour without looking at their phones or appear to be totally obsessed with online games. So it was great to hear back from teachers that this story, while it was a little bit deep for our younger students, did, in fact, provide the impetus for discussion around the issues we are currently addressing here in the Senior School.
Besides discussion prompts I also put together a Kahoot based on the story. You can join it here at www.kahoot.it or with the Kahoot app!
Book Week & International Women's Day - Be the change for gender equity.
Our Book Week Theme "Be the Change" links well to International Women's Day (IWD) on the 2nd March. Not only are our libraries promoting books about women who have inspired others through kindness and activism but we are promoting fiction titles with strong female characters and books written by female authors. If you have not seen the video below it is worth a quick look. Fortunately, our libraries are committed to curating a more balanced and diverse collection
Be the change ... with gender equality.
The benefits of gender equality are not just for women and girls, but “for everyone whose lives will be changed by a fairer world”, the chief of UN Women said in her message for International Women’s Day (IWD) at UN Headquarters on Friday, being celebrated in New York, ahead of the official day.
Reading celebrations beyond DCSG
Our Book Week celebrations also coincide with the Read Across America celebrations which means there are lots are great resources about reading from that side of the world as well. Include below are two which are very relevant to us here in the library.
Libraries, the Heart of the School
When libraries provide access to books and impetus to read, they are potentially influencing students’ life outcomes. ~ Dr Margaret Merga
In this recent article, Dr. Margaret Merga, author and Senior Lecturer at Edith Cowan University, talks about the importance of libraries in today's school environment. Merga's research work focuses on the social and environmental influences on literacy engagement and acquisition and the position of reading and books in the contemporary world. Her work also explores the role that librarians, teachers and parents can play in supporting young people to become life-long readers. A very timely read for anyone wondering why we make such a big deal about Book Week at DCSG.
“Let’s be reasonable and add an eighth day to the week that is devoted exclusively to reading.” – Lena Dunham
Here at we don't just devote one day, we do a whole week of celebrating the joy of reading! The Coronavirus this year has meant that we have needed to review events and cut things back a little, but we are committed to ensuring that we make this special week as magical as ever for students.
All of the staff in the College are embracing our Book Week theme of 'Be the Change' and will be taking part in activities focusing on this theme. This includes celebrating books related to sustainability, gender equality, inspiring people and kindness and we have a plethora of these books in all three libraries.
Research clearly shows quality school library programs run by certified teacher librarians are powerful boosters of student achievement. Collaborating with teachers and interacting directly with students, our libraries play an important role in supporting inquiry-based learning and developing the essential digital and critical literacy skills our students need to navigate today’s online environment
Children who read perform better academically and reading for pleasure can have a greater influence on a child’s academic success than socio-economic factors. We are very fortunate to have such a strong reading culture here in DCSG and the libraries across the college are committed to working together to continue to enhance and build on this strength
Click here for even more details about these charities.
Book Week & International Women's Day
Our Book Week Theme "Be the Change" links well to International Women's Day (IWD) on the 2nd March. Not only are our libraries promoting books about women who have inspired others through kindness and activism but we are promoting fiction titles with strong female characters and books written by female authors. If you have not seen the video below it is worth a quick look. Fortunately, our libraries are committed to curating a more balanced and diverse collection
The Importance of a School Reading Culture
Studies show that reading for pleasure makes a big difference to children’s educational performance. Likewise, evidence suggests that children who read for enjoyment every day not only perform better in reading tests than those who do not, but also develop a broader vocabulary, increased general knowledge and a better understanding of other cultures.
In fact, reading for pleasure is more likely to determine whether a child does well at school than their social or economic background. Click here to view two great infographics relating to this.