Reading finally has its day
Singapore — Sometimes reading can save the day. And this year’s first ever National Reading Day, which happens to be today, proves just that.
SINGAPORE — Sometimes reading can save the day. And this year’s first ever National Reading Day, which happens to be today, proves just that.
For every 10 people who read for 15 minutes today, a book will be donated to the National Library Board’s (NLB) kidsRead club beneficiaries who are from less privileged families. Members of the public can participate in this activity at regional libraries or from wherever they are, simply by posting a group photo on their Facebook page with the hashtag #readforbooks.
Following the launch of the National Reading Movement on June 3, the inaugural National Reading Day marks the start of an annual celebration of the joy and importance of reading, and NLB is hoping to invite everyone to read together as a nation and to participate in reading activities island-wide at all NLB’s libraries.
These include a six-hour marathon of storytelling segments by international storytellers at Woodlands Regional Library, an origami workshop at Bishan Public Library, and a talk on how to spot signs that show one’s child is feeling stressed out at Marine Parade Public Library.
Even athletes from Sport Singapore (SportSG), including rugby player Sidney Kumar and waterpolo goalkeeper Nigel Tay, will be present at the National Library today to recommend their favourite tomes to visitors at the OneTeamSg Cheer Truck.
NLB’s associate librarian Karthik Ramasamy said: “We are featuring the TeamSG athletes as ‘reading role models’, and they have been actively sharing good reads on the TeamSG Facebook page, and conducting storytelling sessions at our public libraries. We will continue to work with SportSG to encourage all to Read More, Read Widely and Read Together.”
The National Reading Day will fall on the last Saturday of July every year.