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Dressing up

Dressing up? It’s up to you! There are lots of ways to encourage children to read for fun.

Dressing up

Dressing up

For Educators

Dressing up is an effective way to encourage children (particularly reluctant readers) to engage with reading. It can help children express what they enjoy reading and exchange reading recommendations.

Top tips:

  • Let parents and children know there’s no pressure!
  • We share great low-cost ideas that can be adapted for nearly every character on our dressing up page.
  • Not dressing up? Chose alternatives that support reading enjoyment, rather than other areas of learning. See below for ideas.

World Book Day Shop

Looking for something to wear for World Book Day?

Explore our World Book Day shop, filled with organic cotton clothing and unique gifts for book lovers. Shop exclusive designs from talented artists and illustrators, including Vivian Truong, Tatty Devine, and Anita Mangan.

Every purchase helps the charity World Book Day® encourage more children to enjoy reading, and experience the life-changing benefits it brings.

Not dressing up? Try one of these:

  • Wear your comfiest reading clothes or pyjamas
  • Draw a role on the wall – invite children to draw round each other and modify the silhouette to create what a costume could be.
  • Create costumes at school using the workshop in our low cost dressing up pack or by doing a 10 minute cardboard challenge
  • Decorate classroom windows or doors
  • Make book spoons or potatoes and create a display
  • No favourite book? Use a hobby as inspiration. A favourite fact or illustration from a graphic novel attached to a t-shirt is just as good.

Have you got other great alternatives? Add them to our activity bank.

Find suggestions here

For parents

If your child is dressing up, the most important thing is that it shows what your child wants to read.

Download our dressing up ideas for parents resource to support you with encouraging your child/children to enjoy reading for fun.

Dressing Up – Ideas for Parents

Our low cost costume making pack

Bring our 2025 £1/€1.50 books to life with easy, affordable costume ideas from our low cost dressing up pack. Available to download below.

You can adapt the templates to make book or character costumes.

We also have a whole-class workshop plan to help schools run their own low-cost dressing-up workshop.

To download our 2024 pack click here.

 

Dressing up resources

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