Bring the celebration of reading and literacy into your classroom, library, school, and home all year long.
Read Across America Day: Celebrate a Nation of Diverse Readers
Composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim was born today.
Students examine the painting that inspired Sondheim's Pulitzer-prize winning musical and then create a story of their own based on image they choose.
Playwright August Wilson was born in 1945.
Students use the Timeline Tool and Drama Map to create a decade-by-decade record and play of their community's history.
Celebrate the National Day on Writing®!
Students examine the different ways that they write and think about the role writing plays in life.
Today is Leap Day!
Our solar year is 365.24219 days. Since our calendar does not deal in partial days, every four years, we add an additional day to February.
In 1564, William Shakespeare was born on this day.
Based on grade level, students learn about rhyming structure, experiment with the Shakespearean Insult Kit, or study scenes from Othello and watch an adaptation of that scene from the movie O.
Valentine's Day is today!
Students find examples of figurative language and write an original example of each device, illustrate, and share them with the class.
The Lunar New Year starts today.
Today is the first day of the New Year on the Chinese lunar calendar.
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien was born on this day.
Students compare the film versions of The Lord of the Rings and Tolkien's novels. Students then imagine how a scene in a current novel that they are reading would be filmed.
Take part in the African American Read-In!
Students come together with family and friends to take part in a read-in of books by African American authors and report their results.
Today is the birthday of Lewis Carroll, author of Alice in Wonderland.
After reading one of Carroll's chapters, students plan an unbirthday party and do activities and preparation for the event.
Jane Yolen was born in 1939.
Students read one of Jane Yolen's books, retell the story in the form of a puppet show, research animals in the book, and document their findings with the Animal Study interactive tool.
Celebrate National Family Literacy Day!
Parents, grandparents, and other family members are invited to the classroom for a family-school reading day.
It's Independence Day! Or is it?
Students consider why there are so many different dates associated with the Declaration of Independence and why the nation's birthday is celebrated on July 4.
Celebrate Juneteenth!
Students use the Venn Diagram to compare Juneteenth celebrations to Fourth of July celebrations and hypothesize about the differences.
The first Academy Awards ceremony was held in 1929.
Students make lists of their favorite and least favorite movies and brainstorm qualities that make a film good or bad. Next, students write a movie review for a film they have seen.
Star Wars creator George Lucas was born in 1944.
Students use the Hero's Journey interactive to describe how Luke Skywalker meets each stage of his journey, and then brainstorm other works that use the formula.
It's Winter in the Northern Hemisphere!
Students brainstorm words or images that they associate with winter, select and read a picture book about winter, and compare the two using the interactive Venn Diagram.
Walt Disney was born in 1901.
Students describe female characters in Disney films, discuss their characteristics, and write a thesis statement about them.
A Christmas Carol was the first book transmitted over radio!
Students write a script for A Christmas Carol on a level that primary students can read and perform. Older students record the performance and create a website to showcase photographs.