Celebrating its 25th birthday, World Book Day encourages children to read for pleasure and to fall in love with reading.

Reading for pleasure helps build the foundation for a child's future success - more than their family circumstances, parents educational background, or finances.

Spending just 10 minutes reading every day can make a crucial difference to kids futures, all whilst having fun.

Established by UNESCO as a worldwide celebration of reading, World Book Day is celebrated in over 100 countries worldwide every year on the 3rd March.

Photo by Catherine Hammond on Unsplash

Bigjigs Favourite Childhood Books

We took a trip down memory lane to share our favourite childhood reads.

Tom

"The Philip Pullman books, particularly The Amber Spyglass. Also, the classic Beano and Dandy comics if they count... I really should cancel my subscription to those..."

Shannon

"Kensuke's Kingdom by Michael Morpurgo was my favourite book when I was I kid - the true reason why I have a stupid amount of facts about komodo dragons."

Zoe

"Books by Roald Dahl and Jacqueline Wilson as well as the Series of Unfortunate Events books were my favourite reads."

Robyn

"I can remember my favourite toddler book being Janet & Allan Ahlberg's Peepo! as I loved the colourful illustrations and discovering what was going on in the picture. My favourites as I got older were Jacqueline Wilson's The Story of Tracy Beaker and The Dustbin Baby."

Maggie

"Goosebumps by R.L. Stine. The first one I read was Goosebumps: The Girl Who Cried Monster. I think the Goosebumps books were the intro to my love for horror films!"

Tarryn

"Mine were the Nancy Drew detective files - I loved it! Also loved Roald Dahl books."

Hannah

"Jacqueline Wilson for me too! The Bed and Breakfast Star was my all time favourite!"

World Book Day Ideas

Wondering what to do for World Book Day? Check out our ideas!

Dressing Up

Photo by Steven Libralon on Unsplash

Get your little one to dress up as their favourite book character. Stuck for inspiration? Here are some World Book Day costume ideas:

• Roald Dahl - Matilda, Miss Trunchball, Willy Wonka, Charlie Bucket, the BFG, Fantastic Mr Fox
• Beatrix Potter - Peter Rabbit, Flopsy Bunny
• Horrid Henry
• Gangsta Granny
• The Very Hungry Caterpillar
• Dennis the Menace
• Mary Poppins
• Alice in Wonderland
• JK Rowling - Harry Potter, Newt Salamander
• Peter Pan and Tinkerbell
• Red Riding Hood
• Goldilocks
• Robin Hood

Kids costumes are a great way to re-enact parts from books, sparking imaginative play and developing children's confidence and vocabulary.

Secret Reading Den

What could be better than crawling into a super cosy reading nook to enjoy a good story? Our FSC Certified Kids Teepee comes with curtains to welcome in (or shut out) the grown-ups for reading time!

It is made from eco-friendly FSC certified wood and features a natural triangular print. The wooden poles easily slot together and are kept in place with the sewn bottom pockets. A teepee is a perfect place to enjoy cosy reading time in peace and quiet.

Comic Books

Photo by János Venczák on Unsplash

Get kids to get hold of some colouring pens and design their own comic book and mini-books. A fantastic way to develop storytelling and literacy skills, whilst drawing helps to develop creativity and fine motor skills.

Reading Buddies

Another way to inspire kids to read aloud is to give them a reading buddy - the plush kind. A favourite teddy or soft doll is a great listener and helps little readers develop self-confidence when practising their reading and vocabulary skills.

Fun Literacy Toys

Photo by Michał Parzuchowski on Unsplash

Help your child boost their writing, spelling and language skills that bit further. Our Alphabet First Phonics Cubebook promotes early word recognition and letter pronunciation. It is an intriguing way to learn the alphabet - learning upper and lowercase, how to write it and how to say it.

If your child has dyslexia, our range of Lexie Mouse books are dyslexia-friendly and use the unique "Dyslexie" font; these phonics books are printed with bolder letters, lengthened ascenders and descenders, wider openings, slants and bolder capital letters and punctuation.

How are you celebrating World Book Day?

What are you doing for World Book Day? If you have anything fun planned with our Bigjigs products, tag us @BigjigsToys.