First Minister marks start of Book Week Scotland

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon met Glasgow school pupils taking part in the First Minister’s Reading Challenge on the first day of Book Week Scotland.

Since its launch in September, 70% of schools in Scotland have signed up to the Reading Challenge with more than 180,000 reading passports for pupils already ordered.

The Reading Challenge is also now working with the Children’s University and RNIB to create new resources for schools taking part, including audio books for visually impaired children.

As part of Book Week Scotland’s activity to encourage children to read more, the First Minister also challenged the 20 pupils at St. Conval’s Primary School to take part in a ‘reading dare’.

The First Minister said:

“Book Week Scotland’s reading dares are a great way to excite children about reading and is exactly what the Reading Challenge is all about – encouraging children to develop a love of reading from an early age through fun activities.

“I love getting updates on what schools are doing as part of the Reading Challenge so it was fantastic to see the pupils at St. Conval’s Primary getting so involved and seeing what dares they had come up with. They also accepted my dare to write a review and put it in a book that they have borrowed from the library for the next reader to find.

“This government is absolutely committed to improving literacy and the Reading Challenge will help us achieve that, along with our £750 million investment over the next five years to close the attainment gap in Scotland.”

Marc Lambert, CEO of the Scottish Book Trust, said:

“Book Week Scotland is the perfect time for teachers and parents alike to get their children enthused about the First Minister’s Reading Challenge. With hundreds of author events for all tastes and ages, a free Scotland-wide webcast with author Lauren Child and a multitude of reading-related teaching resources on our website, now is the perfect time to show the next generation how much fun books can be!”

Background

More information about the First Minister’s Reading Challenge can be found here: http://www.scottishbooktrust.com/learning/teachers-librarians/first-ministers-reading-challenge

More information about Book Week Scotland reading dares can be found here: http://www.scottishbooktrust.com/learning/learning-resources/resource/reading-dares-learning-resource

For more information about Book Week Scotland, visit www.bookweekscotland.com. Follow@Bookweekscot on Twitter, check out #bookweekscot or like the Book Week Scotland Facebook page.‎

Initiated by the Scottish Government and supported, along with a Reading Champions programme in libraries, by £200,000 from Creative Scotland, Book Week Scotland will be delivered by Scottish Book Trust. Book Week Scotland in public libraries and Further Education College libraries is funded by the Scottish Library and Information Council.