“A book is a gift you can open again and again.” —Garrison Keillor
On January 27, 2015, students and staff at Royal Oak School learned that sharing a love for reading never gets old. To celebrate Family Literacy Day and receiving our Library Unlimited cards from the Calgary Public Library, Royal Oak School decided to have a “Snuggle Up and Read” event. Throughout the day, students experienced several special literacy activities that were inspired by Kid President’s #BookitForward initiative (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXFb_io55bg). Kid President asks, “What book do you think the world needs to read more? What story has inspired your life?” By taking on this initiative and sharing our favorite books with others, we hoped to continue to promote a love for reading in our students. Each grade group received a visit from our principal, Ms. Sparks, as she read them one of her favorite books. Classroom teachers also visited a different class in the school that they had never worked with before to read them one of their favorite stories. Students were also asked to bring in their favorite books and had the opportunity to read and share them with their buddy class. For example, grade 2 students shared their favorite books with their grade 4 buddy class and vice versa. To top the day off, students and staff were able to come to school wearing pajamas so we could truly “snuggle up and read”. The school wide event was a success with many favorite stories shared.