Book Week 2018 – Activity Ideas

Are you ready to Find Your Treasure? Book Week is the perfect time for engaging people with their library. And this year’s theme offers plenty of ideas for activities.

Treasure Hunt

No surprise that a treasure hunt will head this list. But there are plenty of treasure hunts to choose from.

Geocaching:

While a school or library based geocaching hunt would not be eligible to be listed on the official geocaching site, the site does offer plenty of ideas which could be translated to creating your own geocaching adventure. Check out their 101 info page. Or for some fun ideas check out this post from Home Grown Hearts.

Scavenger Hunt

Whether you use a list of items the players must collect or a list of items they photograph or write down along the way, a scavenger hunt can be tied to the Book Week theme or loosely based around all things books and reading. Maybe participants  have to find certain items around the library or in particular books. For more ideas, check out this fun map-based Reading Scavenger Hunt from Modern Parents Messy Kids. 

QR Code Hunt

I have successfully used QR code hunts, both within the library and within the wider school grounds. Both require participants to find a set of QR codes, which then reveal the next clue or a code to write down. There are a range of online QR code makers that are highly customisable.

Traditional Treasure Hunt

Using a map or a set of clues, participants must find their treasure. Again, this can be tied to the Book Week theme or to books in general. Quote, library collection locations, or book titles can all be used as clues or location markers. Or add a secret pirate code.

Golden Tickets

Well, there may not be any chocolate involved, but hiding a number of Golden Tickets or similar treasure in a number of randomly selected titles is lots of fun for the unsuspecting borrower who happens upon it while reading. The ticket may then be exchanged for a special treat or prize. Or what about printed vouchers hidden in books that can be exchanged for chocolate, a get-out-of-an-overdue-fine-free card or small prize. You could even get fancy and create your own scratch-off tickets, combining 1 part dishwashing liquid to two parts metallic paint to paint over a secret message.

Craft and Making

Treasure Maps

I’ve yet to meet a young child who doesn’t love to draw treasure maps. This activity could be just for fun or turned into a competition. Perhaps students would like to create a treasure map that leads to the secret location of their favourite book?

Pirate Craft

Paper pirate hats, cardboard treasure chests, or paper-roll parrots, the craft ideas for treasure-pirate themed crafts are endless.

Anything that is created in your library makerspace can also be added to your Book Week display – that is, if you can convince the students to leave their creations behind!

Memory Boxes

Just as in Mem Fox’s Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge, students could create a small memory box, each treasure representative of a specific memory, family story or literary favourite. For example, my literary memory box would include a handmade golden snitch (foil, paper and glue), a cardboard spool of thread (anyone else read and loved Threads by Sophia Bennett?), and a blue paper butterfly (just like on the cover of my favourite copy of Eve Ibbotson’s Journey To The River Sea.

Competitions

cbca bOOK OF THE yeAR Shortlist guESSING cOMPETITION

This one is a recurring favourite at our library. You can find the CBCA Shortlist on their website. Students attempt to guess which book will win book of the year in each category. We use printed forms to circle the winner, or voting slips, but if you want to take the competition out of it, tokens and voting boxes can be used. We’ve never had someone correctly guess all six winners, but some have some close.

Bookmark and Poster Creation Competitions

Creative hands can be engaged with bookmark or poster creation competitions. Use the Book Week theme, Find Your Treasure, as the guiding inspiration. Our library will be creating student-made treasure bookmarks, where students share their top ten favourite books. These bookmarks will then be copied and shared with other students, sharing the favourite literary treasures and book recommendations between peers.

 

You can also check out my Pinterest board, Library – Book Week, which I will be updating to reflect the 2018 theme.