Cape Town - International Children’s Book Day is next Saturday, an opportunity to take a trip down memory lane, re-reading your childhood favourites or taking part in a book hunt.
The annual event is sponsored by non-profit organisation, International Board on Books for Young People. First celebrated in 1967, it is observed on or around the birthday of Danish author Hans Christian Andersen, who wrote children’s classics such as The Little Mermaid, Princess and The Pea, The Ugly Duckling and The Emperor’s New Clothes.
The Cape Town Museum of Childhood, the first of its kind in Africa and due to open this year, will host a number of programmes and activities to celebrate the day. Capetonians of all ages are encouraged to take part in the museum’s “Find The Book” challenge, in which a number of gift-wrapped books will be hidden across Cape Town.
Clues and tips will be posted on the museum’s social media platforms using the hashtag #foundmybook.
The winner will receive a R1 000 bookshop voucher and 50 new children’s books to be donated to an Early Childhood Development Centre of his or her choice.
Bridget Clampett, manager of the museum’s outreach programmes, said: “We want to motivate children to read and ‘Find The Book’ will do just that. It will get children excited about finding new books, which will spark continued interest in reading.”
The museum is a project of the Centre for Early Childhood Development, a non-profit organisation started in 1994 to ensure quality care and education for young children. It will house a national collection of childhood-related exhibitions, providing an interactive space for children and their families to gain insights about childhood heritage.
Visit www.museumof childhood.org.za.
Cape Argus