Book Week at MCC

“Show me a family of readers, and I will show you the people who move the world.” Napoleon Bonaparte 

As primary students filtered into the school grounds, there were colourful, book characters everywhere. The buzz was palpable and we can see how much Book Week has grown over the years.  

The Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA) began Book Week in 1945. CBCA Book Week is a week-long event, now embraced and celebrated by schools and libraries all around Australia. It is a time for communities to celebrate books, highlight the importance of reading and acknowledge our cherished Australian authors and illustrators. 

Teachers and librarians develop activities, create vibrant displays, run competitions and highlight the importance of reading for students according to the theme that year. The theme for CBCA Book Week in 2022 was “Dreaming with eyes open…”  

Book Week is something we circle on the calendar at the beginning of every year. The students and staff really look forward to dressing up and coming to school as their favourite book character for the Book Week Parade. Parents, students and teachers work so hard to come up with costumes and have their favourite books on hand. It’s worth all the effort when the Book Parade rolls around. 

The classroom learning throughout CBCA Book Week was also geared towards the promotion of books and reading. There was a competition running for students to design the school library of their dreams in any artform they choose. At lunchtimes students were able to participate in various library activities such as the ‘Book Week Dream Hunt.’ Students were tasked with following clues to match a ‘dreamy’ book plot and discover the ‘mystery word’ at the end of the hunt. We ended up with 200+ students exploring the school, hunting down clues during their lunchbreak. It was joyful chaos! It helped to promote reading literary inside and outside the classroom. Some Secondary students joined in too which was a pleasant surprise. 

Having parents back onsite for the Book Parade, after two years affected by Covid was special too. It was a privilege and a joy to reconnect as a school community, through a love of books and learning. As parents and carers, we thank you all for partnering with us this year to make Book Week 2022 a success! 

Joshua Passarini, ICT Librarian