WORLD READ ALOUD DAY Unique events by Scholastic India

Team L&M

To highlight the importance of reading aloud and sharing stories and calling on everyone to keep the progress going, the global literacy non-profit LitWorld and title sponsor Scholastic is uniting people around the world for the 10th annual World Read Aloud Day (WRAD) today, February 1, 2019.

According to the latest Kids and Families Reading Report published by Scholastic in the US, while a majority of families (55%) read aloud 5–7 days a week before a child turns six, this percentage then begins to decline dramatically. “Research shows read-aloud frequency can help shape a young child into a frequent reader. At Scholastic India, our mission is to help foster the habit of reading among children and to help them grow into readers. It is a wonderful opportunity for all of us in India to celebrate the love and joy of reading aloud,” says Scholastic India managing director Neeraj Jain.

On World Read Aloud Day, students, families and educators everywhere are invited to tune in to the Scholastic India Facebook page to watch a host of authors performing read aloud from their books. Sampurna Chattarji, Sakshi Singh and Nalini Sorensen, among others, will be reading excerpts from their books and encouraging a love of the written word. Schools across India have also decided to participate in this and celebrate Read Aloud in their premises.

Globally, millions of people will join in the Day festivities by hosting their own unique WRAD gatherings, including school-wide assemblies, local book drives, community marches and more. Through Skype in the Classroom, educators have the opportunity to register to virtually connect students with authors for special read-alouds.

On social media, participants can share snapshots and videos of their special read-aloud moments, books and ideas using the hashtags #WorldReadAloudDay and #ScholasticIndiaReadAloud

“It has been thrilling to watch this movement take hold in over 170 countries all across the globe over the past ten years,” shared Dorothy Lee, Executive Director of LitWorld, adding, “Communities embrace this day as a call to action for both the seriousness of the human right to literacy, and the joy we create when we share stories. Reading aloud is a deceptively simple education best practice that gets right to the heart of how we can build a world of empathy and equity when we raise our voices with courage, and listen to one another with open minds.”