International Children’s Book Day
International Children’s Book Day
International Children’s Book Day began in 1967 and is now managed by The International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY). The day aims to remind us of the importance of children’s books and to show our appreciation for the many children’s book authors. Reading is crucial to children’s development and is one of the best ways to nourish a child’s imagination and creativity.
The IBBY’s main goals are to encourage understanding through children’s books, ensure children have access to books with high quality content, incentivising valuable research around children’s literacy, facilitating assistance and training programs for those who work with children and in youth literature, ensuring the protection of ‘The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child’ and encouraging the distribution of quality books, particularly in developing countries and low socioeconomic communities.
There are many ways to show your support for this cause. Some examples are: organising a book fair fundraiser at your local school for an IBBY Appeal, donating to IBBY for their Children in Crisis Fund or helping a child in your life advance their literacy and comprehension skills. You can find a variety of appeals from around the world that need support and funding on their website.
Please visit their website for examples of how you can get involved and the list of IBBY’s regional meetings’ dates and locations. Remember to visit their social media pages for more ideas and any updates about International Children’s Book Day 2023.
