Reading is Magic Festival
From Bath Festivals
Resource type: Literature Festival
Price band: Free
Key stage: KS1, KS2, KS3
Region(s): All of UK
The Reading is Magic Festival is a free online literature festival for primary and secondary schools that takes place in the autumn term. This year’s festival runs from Monday 2nd October – Friday 6th October.
The festival provides a programme of readings, discussions and workshops by best-selling authors, illustrators and poets that celebrate five key themes from Cressida Cowell’s Waterstones Children’s Laureate Charter:
”every child has the right to…
- … be creative for at least 15 minutes a week
- … have a planet to read on
- … see themselves reflected in a book
- …have some choice in what they read
- … read for the joy of it
This year’s line-up includes: David Almond and Tom de Freston, Sita Brahmachari and Natalie Sirett, James and Lucy Catchpole, Joseph Coelho and J. T. Williams, Tracey Corderoy and Steven Lenton, Cressida Cowell, Catherine Doyle and Katherine Webber, JonArno Lawson and Qin Leng, Danielle Y. C. McClean, Elle McNicoll and the authors shortlisted for the inaugural Adrien Prize, Angie Thomas, David Wolstencroft and Harry Woodgate.
Each event lasts 30 minutes and will be available to view on the relevant event page from the time and day listed. Events will then be available to view on demand until the end of the year. Viewing information and regular updates are available via the Reading is Magic Festival e-newsletter.
All video events have captions and a British Sign Language interpreter. The Festival has also partnered with Calibre Audio and Living Paintings to ensure that children who struggle to access print can enjoy audio and tactile editions of a selection of the books featured in the programme.
Cost: Free.
About Reading is Magic Festival: The Reading is Magic Festival is a partnership between festivals and programmers across the world, including Bath Children’s Literature Festival, Black British Book Festival, Bocas Lit Fest, BookTrust, Flip Through Flounders, Toronto International Festival of Authors, Waterstones Children’s Laureate and Wigtown Book Festival.
Further resources:
- Teaching resources are available for many of the sessions and can be found on the page for each individual event. There are also templates for festival bunting and a pen pot to download.
- Take advantage of an exclusive 20% discount on book packs of titles featured in this year’s Reading is Magic Festival from specialist school book supplier Peters. There are packs for KS1, KS2 and Secondary available.
- Events from previous festivals are available to view for a one-off memberships cost of £5.
- Find other literature festivals with dedicated schools programmes here.
- Find further resources to help support pupils’ access to authors here.
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