Create a colourful classroom decoration while sharing book ideas. Pupils work together to make a paper chain that celebrates their favourite reads and helps everyone find their next great book.
Why it works
This activity encourages book talk, peer recommendations, and reading for fun. It helps children reflect on what they enjoy, listen to others’ choices, and discover new stories to try.
Get started
Ask each pupil to choose a book they have enjoyed or one they would like to recommend. Pupils who haven’t found a favourite yet can think about the type of story they might enjoy instead.
Explore connections
Talk about what connects pupils to their chosen books:
- Who recommended it?
- What themes or ideas stood out?
- Which other books or authors feel similar?
- What makes it appealing to others?
Create a spider diagram
Invite pupils to make a quick diagram showing how their book links to others. This could include:
- Genre or topic
- Shared interests
- Similar characters or settings
- Author or illustrator connections
- Keywords that describe the story
Make the paper chain
- Decorate a paper strip with the title of each chosen book.
- Write recommendations or key themes on the tags.
- Connect the strips to form a paper chain.
- Keep adding until everyone’s book is included.
- Display the finished chain as a celebration of your class reading community.
Use the printable sheet to create your Book recommendation paper chain.
Use of World Book Day resources
These resources are free to use for schools, early years settings, libraries, charities, and community groups celebrating World Book Day. Commercial organisations must have a partnership or licence agreement in place before using World Book Day assets. If you are interested in working with us, please contact partnerships@worldbookday.com.