World Book Day – which took place on Thursday 3 March 2022 – is one of the highlights of our year at the National Literacy Trust! We love the annual celebration of authors, illustrators, books and the joy of reading.
How we celebrated World Book Day 2022!
In 2022 we marked the 25th anniversary of World Book Day, and joined in with the year's theme and message for all children: You are a reader!
In addition to some great World Book Day events, we also distributed 60,000 books across the country. Read more in our World Book Day news update.
Resources
In addition, to help everyone celebrate the day we created some great new resources to inspire and encourage reading for pleasure. Download them here!
Working in partnership with World Book Day we've helped compile 25 ideas to help you celebrate.
What's more, our Young Readers Programme is also celebrating its 25th anniversary, and the team has developed two inspirational booklists.
The first is packed with suggestions for titles to try after enjoying a special World Book Day read.
The second collection brings together 25 favourite, fantastic books, marking 25 years of the Young Readers Programme supporting children to develop their love of books and establish their own reading identity.
Online World Book Day event
On World Book Day itself, Thursday 3 March, teachers and pupils across the UK joined in with our free World Book Day 2022 Great Big Footy & Booky Quiz.
The quiz was hosted by top sports presenter Kelly Somers (BBC, Amazon, Premier League TV) and featured Football School authors Alex Bellos and Ben Lyttleton. It covered both football-themed and reading-themed questions pitched by footballing heroes and our writer pals.
The quiz was recorded, so you can enjoy all the fun by watching it back on our Premier League Takeover page.
Resources for schools and settings
In addition to our special World Book Day 2022: What to read next and 25 books for 25 years booklists, we also have a huge range of resources that focus on storytelling and reading for pleasure. Here are a few you might like to try:
- Young Readers Story Club – themed tales read by authors and storytellers, including activities to try out.
- Supporting early years children to tell stories.
- Are you looking for some brilliant ideas to encourage reading for pleasure?
- Learn more about A River of Stories - Tales and Poems from Across the Commonwealth
We also have premium resources available for those with a subscribed National Literacy Trust membership:
- Developing a whole-school reading environment for primary schools
- Developing a whole-school reading environment for secondary schools
You can also consult our directory of authors and storytellers to help plan a school visit (virtual or in-person) in the coming year.
Activities at home
Sharing stories is a great way to enjoy time together as a family, and help children build a love of reading for pleasure. Our Word for Life site is packed with ideas for fun, family activities that support children's reading, writing and speaking at home
Learn more about World Book Day
The World Book Day website is a great place to discover more about the importance of reading for pleasure, and a huge range of resources for schools, nurseries and families to enjoy, as well as details of the special list of £1 World Book Day titles.
Research: Exploring the impact of World Book Day
The National Literacy Trust was commissioned by World Book Day to evaluate the impact of the initiative on the reading lives of children aged 8 to 11 in the UK.
Our report shows how World Book Day welcomes children into the world of books and reading in two ways: by helping all children become book owners, many for the first time, and by supporting a variety of activities and experiences essential for building life-long readers.
See key findings and download our World Book Day research report.