REMINDERS FOR JAMB 2014/2015... REGISTRATION/EXAM DATE,RECOMMENDED TEXTBOOKS TO BE READ FOR USE OF ENGLISH...AND NOTES ON APPROVED REGISTRATION CENTERS!

[caption id="attachment_19156" align="alignleft" width="400"] Prof Dibu_Ojerinde...JAMB[/caption]

To Students, Parents,Schools,Churches and Mosques…Here Are Reasons/ Advantages of Registering Your Wards for Jamb 2014 Through Our Centre (Edupedia Associates) (lagosbooksclub.wordpress.com)

2014 Jamb Tips For University Admissions...Read Before Filling Your Jamb Registration Forms! (lagosbooksclub.wordpress.com)

A.JAMB 2014/2015 REGISTRATION/EXAM DATE

  The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB)  began the sale of application forms into the nation’s tertiary Institutions a while ago. The early sale of the application forms is to enable Nigerians desirous of tertiary education have access to the forms so that they could prepare ahead for the examination slated for April, 2014.

According to a statement issued in Abuja by JAMB’s spokesman, Fabian Benjamin, the two modes of tests hitherto conducted by JAMB- the Paper and Pencil Test (PPT) and Computer Based Test (CBT) – are still opened to prospective candidates for the 2014 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).

Candidates across the globe who have successfully completed their secondary school education with a minimum of six (6) credits, including the English Language and Mathematics, are expected to obtain the forms at the designated banks and register with the approved cyber cafés across Nigeria and at the Nigeria High Commission Offices in Ghana, United Kingdom (UK), South Africa (SA), Cameroon, Jeddah and Biu.

Candidates are urged to ensure that their data are well captured at the cyber cafés and their subject choices are accurately entered. The JAMB Registrar, Prof. ‘Dibu Ojerinde, urged parents, guardians and café operators to ensure that candidates are well guided in the filling of the forms to avoid wrong filling and unwholesome practices that may affect their choices.

B.RECOMMENDED TEXTBOOKS  FOR USE OF ENGLISH

The public is also urged to note that candidates will be tested on two general books to enhance their reading culture, irrespective of their courses. The books are

1.The Successor by Jerry Agada 

2.Potter’s Wheel by Chukwuemeka Ike

C.TO CHECK FOR APPROVED REGISTRATION CENTERS

CLICK HERE.....http://jamb.org.ng/unifiedtme/RegistrationCentres.aspx

a.Do not turn yourself into a victim of fake jamb registration/ scratch card!

b. For the 2014 UTME Biometrics, only DIGITAL PERSONA scanner will be allowed for finger prints capture.

c. No registered center allowed to charge more than N700 from candidates. This amount  includes printing of 2 copies of your e-slip.

RELATED ARTICLES

To Students, Parents,Schools,Churches and Mosques…Here Are Reasons/ Advantages of Registering Your Wards for Jamb 2014 Through Our Centre (Edupedia Associates) (lagosbooksclub.wordpress.com)

2014 Jamb Tips For University Admissions...Read Before Filling Your Jamb Registration Forms! (lagosbooksclub.wordpress.com)

NIGERIANS ARE INTELLIGENT AND VERY FUNNY…SEE PICS AND CARTOONS!…(3)

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http://lagosbooksclub.com/nigerians-are-intelligent-and-very-funny-see-pics-and-cartoons-1/

http://lagosbooksclub.com/nigerians-intelligent-funnysee-pics-cartoons2/

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ALL ABOUT "DESTRUCTIVE INSTINCT" AGAIN... THE SOFT PORN WANTS A FOOTHOLD IN NIGERIA...WILL IT BE APPROVED?

Marketers jostle for Afrocandy’s soft-porn movie

 

It is not a rumour, but reality. Some movie marketers are jostling to win the right to sell Afrocandy’s controversial “Destructive Instinct’ movie in Nigeria.

The American based Nollywood actress cum singer confirmed this development to HVP yesterday morning when she was contacted via facebook.

[caption id="attachment_8662" align="aligncenter" width="406"] DESTRUCTIVE INSTINCT MOVIE COVER[/caption]

“Destructive Instinct” which is currently being greeted with mixed-reactions from fans features the 41-year old mother of 2 completely nude in sexually explicit positions as she tries to make a daring impact on the industry

HVP gathered that some reputable marketers are already giving Afrocandy the headache in choosing who will eventually win the right to distribute her movie in the country. The film was premiered in America recently. Those who graced the premiere said, it was well attended.

Meanwhile, it is unclear if the censors board will pass the film for sale in Nigeria.

By Benjamin Njoku/VANGUARD

RELATED POST

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SOFT AND HARD PORN TO NOLLYWOOD OF TODAY?

SO WHO EXACTLY IS A GOOD WRITER?...HERE IS AN OPINION BY ALEXKELLYOC

[caption id="attachment_10032" align="aligncenter" width="593"] do good books (or blogs) require master chefs?[/caption]

Good writer definition

I have been accused many times for not being a huge fan of books. I
won’t lie that I really don’t read much. Especially when I was younger,
the teachers would give me a list of books I gotta read during the
summer and since it was summer, who would bother reading?

I’ve always found the school books that were required to be boring.
Except maybe for the Greek myths and legends I had to read when I was in
5th grade. I preferred reading comics to be honest-I like the colored
heroes that had dialogues, usually about what friendship was. I was
never into manga stuff (although, a good friend of mine made me read
some stuff and were not bad at all).

Now things have changed in someway. Of course, I would still not read
completely the books required for school and when I’d forget about it
after the exam on it and in the most positive case, I’d remember the
basic of it. I don’t like reading fiction, nor documentary based
material. I like  authors like Maxim Matkin and Chad Kultgen. Those two
have made me re-read their books so many times and I consider them good
writers since they both made me read their stuff more than one time, but
also because of the way they write. It’s true that both authors write
about sex in both reality and fiction but even when fiction, it’s like i
can almost experience it you know. I bet all of you have such authors
that have that influence on you.

For me, it’s the way those 2 write their stuff. Simple, yet
complicated, real but also with fiction elements. Brutal honest but
needed. They words they choose, especially Kultgen-I like how he’s not
afraid to use sentences like “And he popped her cherry and made her cry”
(taken from “Men, Women & Children” book written by him). I like
how real it sounds despite for some of you it may be gross but there’re
different types of genres for each taste. Some of you prefer those soap
opera based books, others like reading fiction, thirds enjoy reading
about cowboys and so on..

But despite the so many existing genres, I believe that a good writer
has to be able to capture the reader’s attention that much so when the
reader is forced to leave the book for some time, to hurry back and see
how’s the whole situation going to end. He should be careful with his
words, he should be honest more or less (according to the genre) and
should think about what the people would like to read, because let’s be
honest, many people happen to buy books because they’re fooled by the
cover.

I also happen to think that a true writer can also be a blogger. Like
Maxim Matkin (it’s a pseudonym) started like that and as far as I know,
he’s still publishing and when he writes another book, I will buy it no
matter where I would be. He writes about his life, sex, family,
problems, love and everything in between and it’s very much a cycle from
which you cannot escape but each time there’s something new happening
and makes you want to read more and more

I love it when I come across writers on here that really do have the
potential of turning big. My advice would be-keep writing even if this
ends up just as a hobby of yours and who knows, one day your fame will
be earned

BY ALEXKELLYOC

WAS SHAKESPEARE A TAX DODGER OR A RUTHLESS BUSINESSMAN WHO SCAMMED HIS NEIGHBORS?

Study shows Shakespeare as ruthless businessman

Hoarder, moneylender, tax dodger — it's not how we usually think of William Shakespeare..
But we should, according to a group of academics who say the Bard was a ruthless businessman who grew wealthy dealing in grain during a time of famine.

Researchers from Aberystwyth University in Wales argue that we can't fully understand Shakespeare unless we study his often-overlooked business savvy.

"Shakespeare the grain-hoarder has been redacted from history so that Shakespeare the creative genius could be born," the researchers say in a paper due to be delivered at the Hay literary festival in Wales in May.

Jayne Archer, a lecturer in medieval and Renaissance literature at Aberystwyth, said that oversight is the product of "a willful ignorance on behalf of critics and scholars who I think — perhaps through snobbery — cannot countenance the idea of a creative genius also being motivated by self-interest."

Archer and her colleagues Howard Thomas and Richard Marggraf Turley combed through historical archives to uncover details of the playwright's parallel life as a grain merchant and property owner in the town of Stratford-upon-Avon whose practices sometimes brought him into conflict with the law.

"Over a 15-year period he purchased and stored grain, malt and barley for resale at inflated prices to his neighbors and local tradesmen," they wrote, adding that Shakespeare "pursued those who could not (or would not) pay him in full for these staples and used the profits to further his own money-lending activities."

He was pursued by the authorities for tax evasion, and in 1598 was prosecuted for hoarding grain during a time of shortage.

The charge sheet against Shakespeare was not entirely unknown, though it may come as shock to some literature lovers. But the authors argue that modern readers and scholars are out of touch with the harsh realities the writer and his contemporaries faced.

He lived and wrote in the late 16th and early 17th centuries, during a period known as the "Little Ice Age," when unusual cold and heavy rain caused poor harvests and food shortages.

"I think now we have a rather rarefied idea of writers and artists as people who are disconnected from the everyday concerns of their contemporaries," Archer said. "But for most writers for most of history, hunger has been a major concern — and it has been as creatively energizing as any other force."

She argues that knowledge of the era's food insecurity can cast new light on Shakespeare's plays, including "Coriolanus," which is set in an ancient Rome wracked by famine. The food protests in the play can be seen to echo the real-life 1607 uprising of peasants in the English Midlands, where Shakespeare lived.

Shakespeare scholar Jonathan Bate told the Sunday Times newspaper that Archer and her colleagues had done valuable work, saying their research had "given new force to an old argument about the contemporaneity of the protests over grain-hoarding in 'Coriolanus.'"

Archer said famine also informs "King Lear," in which an aging monarch's unjust distribution of his land among his three daughters sparks war.

"In the play there is a very subtle depiction of how dividing up land also involves impacts on the distribution of food," Archer said.

Archer said the idea of Shakespeare as a hardheaded businessman may not fit with romantic notions of the sensitive artist, but we shouldn't judge him too harshly. Hoarding grain was his way of ensuring that his family and neighbors would not go hungry if a harvest failed.

"Remembering Shakespeare as a man of hunger makes him much more human, much more understandable, much more complex," she said.

"He would not have thought of himself first and foremost as a writer. Possibly as an actor — but first and foremost as a good father, a good husband and a good citizen to the people of Stratford."

She said the playwright's funeral monument in Stratford's Holy Trinity Church reflected this. The original monument erected after his death in 1616 showed Shakespeare holding a sack of grain. In the 18th century, it was replaced with a more "writerly" memorial depicting Shakespeare with a tasseled cushion and a quill pen.

By JILL LAWLESS | Associated Press

 

LIBRARY RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR REFERENCE AND USE BY NIGERIAN SECONDARY SCHOOLS (2)

VOCABULARY IMPROVEMENT,NOVELS SUMMARY SCHEME AND RELATED RULES FOR OPERATION

 PREAMBLE

 WHAT IS A NOVEL SUMMARY SCHEME?

 1. Simply put, it means lending novels to students from the school library for reading,  summarization and submission for marking. The major objective is to improve students’ usage of English Language by acclimatization with the written word and subsequent widening of their vocabulary. There are many formats for achieving these and they shall be made available in similar write-ups which are coming up after this.

 2. However, the aim of this write-up is to specify library-related rules for operating the novel summarization schemes in a situation where a school has the library and willingness to operate such a program..The write-up should be read vis-à-vis another write-up titled LIBRARY RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR REFERENCE AND USE BY NIGERIAN SECONDARY SCHOOLS (1).

 3. In using the rules below please note that they relate more to the circumstances at Mason College Festac. Each school should therefore modify them according to its local or special circumstances once it takes a decision to start the Novels scheme.

 HOW TO OPERATE A NOVEL SUMMARY SCHEME

 4. We suggest a novel summary scheme  to be operated  in two phases. The first phase shall include NEW AND POPULAR  novels  recommended by the school for purchase by students during the 1^st and 2^nd terms. The objective shall be to encourage students build up personal libraries in addition to novels collectible from the school library under the second phase The first phase made up mainly of new novels shall be subjected to an overall test during the mid-term examination of the 3^rd term and shall constitute part of the general paper examination (as in Mason College) for the year. The second phase shall be operated as indicated in subsequent paragraphs below.

 JS 1- SS2 (3 TERMS)+ SS3(1^ST TERM ONLY)

 5. Collection of novels shall take place once every fortnight (probably on Fridays)

 6. Novels shall be returned within two weeks with summaries in the FORMAT indicated by school management. The formats acceptable to the school (see more notes on formats in paragraph 1 above) shall be indicated in a subsequent write-up to this.

 7. Students shall be allowed to take additional novels for personal reading if requested by them (subject to a limit of one at a time) but all novels collected at any time shall be returnable to the library within a fortnight as indicated above. All such additional novels, on return, shall have their statuses renewed if requested

 8. The school’s Academic Group shall be present at each collection exercise to assist librarians and students

9.  It shall be the responsibility of the Academic Group to keep a ledger of books collected by each student to prevent repeated  collection of the same novel or non-collection by some lazy students. If any student by chance escapes due observation by the Academic Group and knowingly engages in repeated collections or non-collection such shall be punished in accordance with the school’s list of academic offenses.

 10. Only SS 1 to SS3 students shall be allowed to collect movie VHS, CDs or DVDs in lieu of novels. Such can be collected from the internal or external library of the school.An example of an external library is The academic-related content of the movie shall, however, be approved by the Academic Group if it can. If not references shall be made to the Director for approval. Librarians shall be expected to extract a list of educational   movies available at the external library so that students can make their choices from the library within the school premises. Librarians shall also review this list at the beginning of each term.

 11. Non-collection of novels by students are offenses under the school’s (Mason College) academic offenses schedule and shall be punishable as stated therein. This shall be pointed out to students from time to time. It shall however be the duty of the Academic Group as well as that of the Librarians to monitor students who have not collected novels. They should also ensure that this is done not later than the Tuesday following the Friday scheduled for collection.

 12. No JSS student shall be allowed to take a book or a movie from the external library for the novel summary scheme. However, they shall be allowed to do so for pleasure-reading  purposes.

 SS3 STUDENTS(2^ND/3^RD TERMS) + AFTER GRADUATION OR AS ALUMNI

 13. During the second and third terms SS3 students shall be allowed to collect novels or movies from both libraries without submitting any summary work. They shall also be allowed to keep such assets for 3 days (movies) and 7 days (novels) respectively. Any additional novel or movie collected by any of them from the external library shall be paid for according to the terms of rentals or lateness as operated at that library. Collections from the external library shall be initiated through a note given by the Academic Group after express permission by Management.

 14. No library services shall be available, however, from 1^st May of each year to SS3 students because of WAEC examinations. Such services shall not be available either after the NECO examinations in July. However they shall have the privilege of becoming automatic members of the external library without paying any registration fees as might be demanded. But they shall pay for  services like other public members of that library

DUTIES OF LIBRARIANS

 15. It shall be the duty of Librarians to secure the assets and keep the library neat and tidy at all times. It shall also be their responsibility to prevent or  put in check any form of noise, disturbance or distraction in the library They are permitted to raise appropriate penalties on students or staff members for any misdemeanor in the library. However on any issue leading to penalties to be raised on staff members such shall first be raised to  Management for confirmation through the official daily work done books.

MOVEMENT OF LIBRARY ASSETS

 16. All students and staff members are allowed to make reference to text books in the library only. They are not allowed to take text books away except if specially permitted by management through the Academic Group.

 17. Staff   members whose appointments have been confirmed by management are allowed to take a movie or a novel at the school or external library for a maximum 3 days for a movie and 7 days for a novel after which they shall be charged for late return on  any asset collected from the external library like other members of the public

 OTHER REGULATIONS

 18. The school libraries have more detailed sets of rules and regulations for reference purposes However, additional rules and regulations shall be made known to students and staff members through the usual channels such as this.

 RELATED POST

 LIBRARY RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR REFERENCE AND USE BY NIGERIAN SECONDARY SCHOOLS (1)

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Donate Please

If you feel that our  work has helped you and you’d like to support our mission to  continue spreading ideas like  those mentioned above, please make a donation below. We shall be very grateful for your support.AND NO AMOUNT SHALL BE CONSIDERED TOO SMALL!

Being supported by our readers LIKE YOU enables us to give our creative output (those that originate from us) to the public domain, so it isn’t copyrighted. Please share it freely so that others may benefit from it.

To donate via credit card,cheque or cash, please use the information below and let us know if don’t mind if we acknowledge the donation publicly

Thanking you

O.O.ODUMOSU

ACCOUNTS AT UNITED BANK FOR AFRICA (UBA)(23RD/72RD BRANCH FESTAC,LAGOS)

MASON COLLEGE A/C NO-1005353681

EDUPEDIA ASSOCIATES A/C NO -1005280011

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

LIBRARY RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR REFERENCE AND USE BY NIGERIAN SECONDARY SCHOOLS (1)

A. LIBRARY OFFICIAL HOURS

1.The College library shall be opened every school day from 9:00am to 12 noon and from 1:20 pm to 4:00pm Mondays to Fridays only.

2. It shall be opened on Saturday for cleaning and arranging of its assets only. Specifically, no borrowing, reading or referencing  shall take place on Saturdays by students or staff members.

3. During daily lunch periods it shall be closed but school’s  Academic group shall create a Press Room mode outside the library ( in one of the special rooms) for reading of newspapers, magazines etc. by students and staff members.

4. Between 9:00am and 4:00pm daily librarians shall use their discretion to keep the library opened or closed in accordance to any inconvenience experienced by students or  staff members. However the library shall be closed if 2  generators installed by the school nearby are in use.

B.  GENERAL RULES

5. The Library is the BRAIN of the school and it plays an indispensable role in accomplishing its aims. In order to perform its functions to the satisfaction of students and staff members it needs their understanding and cooperation. The following rules of conduct are meant to spell out in practical terms what we consider as the GOLDEN RULES of the college Library.

6. Students or staff members must sign in and sign out at the librarians’ desk when entering or exiting the library.

7. Observe silence.Idle conversation, loud laughter and other unnecessary noise disturbs other library users and therefore should be avoided. Talking out of necessity must be done in subdued tones. The library atmosphere must be conducive for studying or referencing.

8. Keep the library clean. Do not litter tables with any waste and paper scraps. Use the trash baskets      provided for the purpose.

9.  Eating, drinking and sleeping in the library shall not be allowed.

10. Keep things in order. When you leave arrange/clear your table. Put your chair against the table and avoid obstruction of movement by other users.

11. Return all newspapers, magazines and other materials ( usually located on the central operational table) back to where they were collected from.

12. Handle both books and other library materials with care. They are intended to serve a great many users after you.

C. SCHOOL I.D. CARDS

13. Only students and staff with the school I.D card shall be allowed in the library. Where a student or staff is yet to be issued with such a card, a written authorization in the daily admin work done or the operational books of the library shall be obtained from school Management.

14. All I.D cards shall be properly counter–signed by authorised management staff and shall be laminated. Such cards shall not be transferable by students or staff members. All library assets taken out or used within the library through such cards shall make the owner liable for any inappropriate handling. Such cards shall be submitted to  librarians each day before library use by both students and staff members. They shall also be collectible when exiting the library. Torn, dirty or mutilated cards shall be rejected and shall not be honored until replaced by the school.

F. SECURITY OF ASSETS/DELINQUENT USAGE

15. No bag, envelope, briefcase or any sort of container (nylon or otherwise) shall be allowed in the library.If deposited anywhere outside the library it shall not be the responsibility of the Librarians for any loss of valuables or  disappearance.

16. Every library user shall subject himself or herself to a personal search on the request of any Librarian.

17. No delinquent borrower or user shall be allowed to use the library and its resources unless he/she has settled all debts due to the library for materials, lost, defaced, damaged, torn, etc.

 18. Any person who willfully or maliciously tear, deface, injure or destroy any print or non- print materials or carry away with intent to convert to his or her personal  use any of the library collections and assets shall be punished by suspension or expulsion by the school as the case may be or by a fine exceeding the current price of the library asset in question and shall be recommended by the Librarians to  Management for final disciplinary action.

19. A lost book must be reported immediately to the Librarians, and in the case of students, parents too. The student or staff responsible for the loss shall be expected to replace the lost book with a new one or pay an equivalent sum for a new acquisition within 7 days of such a report being made.


 G. HOME READING/NOVEL SUMMARY SCHEME

20. Library assets shall be allowed to be taken out/home as stated under the rules for Novel Summary Scheme. Any Librarian found  discouraging students from home reading shall be penalized. The maximum numbers of books allowed are stated in the write-up for the Novel Summary scheme (please see the relevant write-up on this).


21. The Alumni of the school shall be allowed to borrow books for use within the library too. The rules for this and the use of Bookends, our public external library(now known as LAGOS BOOKS CLUB), are also stated in the write-up for the Novel Summary scheme.

22. Students who were in PASS Tutorial College or Mason 6^th Form College shall be allowed after leaving the school only with express permission of the Director. Those of them who qualified/ collected testimonials of the school may however be authorized by the school management,who shall thereafter inform the Director.

H. GROUP LIBRARY USAGE /ACADEMIC PERIODS

23. No teacher, Management Staff or the Academic Group shall be allowed to send students or classes of students to the library for “study” or “research/reference” purposes as replacement for regular or remedial periods.

24. Where tutors or the Academic Group require that a class be engaged in group/class  research in the library notice shall be given in advance through the school requisition file or Academic Work Done at least 24 hours prior to the event . The Librarians shall also be informed about the requisition made. Once approved, the use of the library by other students and staff shall be blocked by Librarians for the class during the period covered by such a request

25. The library personnel are empowered to enforce the rules and regulations of the library as stated herein. They shall be accorded the courtesy and respect they deserve. The rules and regulations they enforce are not their own but those of the Mason College Group. They are permitted to report any uncooperative student or staff to school management.

26. No violation of any of these regulations by students or staff members shall lead to an exclusion or forgiveness on a plea of ignorance.

RELATED POST

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
Donate Please

If you feel that our  work has helped you and you’d like to support our mission to  continue spreading ideas like  those mentioned above, please make a donation below. We shall be very grateful for your support.AND NO AMOUNT SHALL BE CONSIDERED TOO SMALL!

Being supported by our readers LIKE YOU enables us to give our creative output (those that originate from us) to the public domain, so it isn’t copyrighted. Please share it freely so that others may benefit from it.

To donate via credit card,cheque or cash, please use the information below and let us know if don’t mind if we acknowledge the donation publicly

Thanking you

O.O.ODUMOSU

ACCOUNTS AT UNITED BANK FOR AFRICA (UBA)(23RD/72RD BRANCH FESTAC,LAGOS)

MASON COLLEGE A/C NO-1005353681

EDUPEDIA ASSOCIATES A/C NO -1005280011

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………................................

ARE WE REALLY SERIOUS ABOUT THE WORLD BOOK DAY IN NIGERIA?...PLEASE READ THIS NARRATION!

World Book Day: The parent-child battles over a costume

Every year thousands of parents have to help with a costume for their child for World Book Day. It isn't easy, writes father-of-two Dominic Casciani.

There was a time when reading a book meant just that. In your head, out loud, to yourself or to a crowd. Whichever way, it was reading.

But not any more. It’s about dressing up. Or at least it’s about dressing up if you happen to be of school age and your teachers have been sucked into the literary-industrial complex of World Book Day.

So a few weeks ago when the slip appeared in my son’s book bag (don’t get me started on pointless bits of paper that could be emailed) announcing yet another opportunity to blow a small fortune on dressing up for one day only, my heart sank.

Before my wife and I had been able to have a grown-up discussion about what to do (as recommended in those middle-class angst parenting books that we seem to have collected but never read) it all happened very quickly.

“DAD! DAD! DAD! DAD! DAD! DAD! DAD! DAD!”

“What?”

“DAD! DAD! DAD! DAD! DAD! I KNOW WHAT I’M GOING TO BE FOR WORLD BOOK DAY!”

“Can you stop shouting and tell me in a normal voice.”

“Sorry. I want to go as a…" (dramatic pause for effect as he assumes the position) "NINJA!”

“You what?”

“A LEGO NINJAGO NINJA!!!!"

“But that’s Lego. That’s not a character from a book.”

“NO IT’S A BOOK I’VE GOT THE BOOK THE LEGEND OF ZANE! SEE! SEE! LOOK! LOOK! LOOK!”

Some parents make more of an effort than others...

“Please stop shouting. Isn’t that a catalogue?”

For the uninitiated, Lego have a range of "character encyclopaedias" which perform the same function for children as the Boden catalogue does for middle class adults.

“Remember, we got it when we went to that rubbish restaurant and I spat out all the food and was sad because I was hungry and you wouldn’t let me play Angry Birds.”

“Oh. Yeah.”

“CAN I TAKE MY SWORDS TO SCHOOL? NINJAAAAA!”

At that point, he leaps on and off the sofa and makes like Jackie Chan. I go to see Mrs C to discuss.

“Start Quote

WBD has become an excuse to dress up as characters with the most tenuous links to any literary form - it's slowly ceasing to be about reading”

“Well that’s done,” she says.

“Eh?”

She’s already been online and ordered a ninja face mask.

“Hang on. It’s World Book Day, not kung fu fighting.”

Wife looks at me sceptically and moves on to the next problem.

Now here’s the point - World Book Day is a marvellous thing. Reading liberates minds. Every page turned expands the horizons of our children’s ambitions.

But in many schools up and down the land WBD has become an excuse to dress up as characters with the most tenuous links to any literary form. It’s slowly ceasing to be about reading.

Now, I’m not against dressing up – I love seeing the little ones in infants loving the fantasy of it all.

But let’s think through what’s increasingly going on here – particularly with the boys. They see WBD as an opportunity to be Battle Force Earth Defenders or something or other.

You’ve seen the cartoon, you’ve bought the book, NOW YOU CAN BE COMMANDER TUCK “EARTHQUAKE” McCRAW.

You get the idea: it’s just another way for us to be sold a load of plastic and polyester tat. And the upshot is that every pound spent on a dress-up is a quid less on books.

Orwell was quite good at dystopian visions of the future. Would he today be predicting a new form of bookshop? One where you can choose between Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple and a rack of sensible tweeds?

World Book Day

That of course will never happen. It’s as unlikely as a world where books are pinged over the internet to a handheld device, removing the need to have the bothersome things cluttering your home where they can be picked up and read by your children.

To my great relief, my daughter’s school is having none of it. They’ve told parents to cough up for a reading activity day with an author. That’s money well spent because (wait for it) IT’S ABOUT READING.

But other schools plough on, despite every parent I can think of being rather tired of the whole dressing-up thing.

So one parent I know has a 16-year-old who is turning out as a banana.

“Is that because she wanted to be the lead character in Defence-related Enzymes Induced by Elicitors of Fusarium in Banana? (£35 online).”

“No,” says mum. “We ran out of other ideas and costumes. So she decided to go as a banana.”

Banana mum’s experience is echoed in unanswered calls for help by other parents up and down the land.

Bellatrix Lestrange and the Mad Hatter

So if you want to be like Winston Smith in 1984, I propose the following mass act of rebellion for next year’s WBD dressing up.

Option one: Put a saucepan on your kid’s head and say they are a tin man or robot or something from no end of books. If your child is subsequently barred for boisterous wielding of said saucepan, you can spend it together tucked up on the sofa reading some actual books. Time well spent, and a day off work too.

Option two: Copy one hard-pressed and exasperated mum I know who is sending her son as Danny the Champion of the World. This is an utterly ingenious act of passive resistance because she is dressing him in the oldest and scruffiest clothes in the house.

Not only has she resisted yielding to the marketing machinations of toy manufacturers, she has paid tribute to one of the greatest works of modern English literature.

Of course, there is a possibility that a teacher will suspect you of spending the family budget on cheap cider rather than children’s clothes.

READ A BOOK,NOT A KINDLE!...HOW WILL NIGERIA CELEBRATE WORLD BOOK DAY NEXT MONTH?(2)

INTERESTED IN A BIT OF WORLD BOOK DAY HISTORY?

1.FROM WIKIPEDIA

World Book Day^[1] or World Book and Copyright Day (also known as International Day of the Book or World Book Days) is a yearly event on 23 April, organized by UNESCO to promote reading, publishing and copyright. In the United Kingdom, the day is instead recognised on the first Thursday in March.

World Book Day was celebrated for the first time on 23 April 1995.The connection between 23 April and books was first made in 1923 by booksellers in Spain as a way to honour the author Miguel de Cervantes who died on that day.

In 1995, UNESCO decided that the World Book and Copyright Day would be celebrated on this date because of the Catalonian festival and because the date is also the anniversary of the birth and death of William Shakespeare, the death of Miguel de Cervantes, Inca Garcilaso de la Vega and Josep Pla, and the birth of Maurice Druon, Manuel Mejía Vallejo and Halldór Laxness.

Although 23 April is often stated as the anniversary of the deaths of both William Shakespeare and Miguel de Cervantes, this is not strictly correct. Cervantes died on 22 April and was buried on 23 April according the Gregorian calendar; however, at this time England still used the Julian calendar. Whilst Shakespeare died on 23 April by the Julian calendar in use in his own country at the time, he actually died eleven days after Cervantes because of the discrepancy between the two date systems. The apparent correspondence of the two dates was a fortunate coincidence for UNESCO.

World Book Day by country

Ireland

In Ireland the day is held annually on the first Thursday in March and is organized in conjunction with World Book Day in the UK.^[2]

Spain

To celebrate this day Cervantes' Don Quixote is read during a two-day "readathon" and the Miguel de Cervantes Prize is presented by the King in Alcalá de Henares.

In Catalonia, Spain, since 1436, St. George's Day has been 'The Day of the Rose', where the exchange of gifts between sweethearts, loved ones and respected ones occurs. It is analogous to Valentine's Day. Although the World Book and Copyright Day has been celebrated since 1995 internationally, the first time that books where also exchanged in 'The Day of the Rose' in Catalonia was in 1926 to commemorate the death of Cervantes.

Sweden

In Sweden, the day is known as Världsbokdagen (World Book Day), and the copyright part is seldom mentioned. Normally celebrated on April 23, it was moved to avoid a clash with Easter to April 13 in the year 2000^[3] and 2011.^[4]

United Kingdom

Main article: World Book Day (United Kingdom)

In the United Kingdom, World Book Day is held annually on the first Thursday in March, to avoid the established international 23 April date due to clashes with Easter school holidays, and the fact that it is also the National Saint's Day of England, St George's Day.

2.World Book Day, UK

The connection between 23 April and books was first made in 1923 by booksellers in Spain as a way to honour the author Miguel de Cervantes who died on that day.

In 1995, UNESCO decided that the World Book and Copyright Day would be celebrated on this date because of the Catalonian festival and because the date is also the anniversary of the birth and death of William Shakespeare, the death of Miguel de Cervantes, Inca Garcilaso de la Vega and Josep Pla, and the birth of Maurice Druon, Manuel Mejía Vallejo and Halldór Laxness.

Although 23 April is often stated as the anniversary of the deaths of both William Shakespeare and Miguel de Cervantes, this is not strictly correct. Cervantes died on 22 April and was buried on 23 April according the Gregorian calendar; however, at this time England still used the Julian calendar. Whilst Shakespeare died on 23 April by the Julian calendar in use in his own country at the time, he actually died eleven days after Cervantes because of the discrepancy between the two date systems. The apparent correspondence of the two dates was a fortunate coincidence for UNESCO.

Here in the UK we celebrate World Book Day on the first Thursday in March as this does not clash with Easter Holidays and schools can then celebrate World Book Day.

The United Kingdom’s own version of World Book Day began in 1998, launched by Prime Minister Tony Blair at the Globe Theatre in London. Several million schoolchildren in Great Britain were given a GB£1 special World Book Day Book Token (€1.50 in Ireland) which could be redeemed against any book in any UK bookshop. A specially created WBD anthology priced at £1 (€1.50 in Ireland) was also published. All World Book Day point of sale and the £1 book carried the special World Book Day logo to help unify the initiative through all outlets.

Since then, World Book Day UK has followed a similar pattern, gradually growing each year to encompass more initiatives, such as Spread The Word, Quick Reads Initiative and Books for Hospitals. Every year, the number of children receiving a World Book Day Book Token has increased.

In 2000, instead of a single £1 special anthology, four separate £1 books were published, covering a wider age-range. Since then, each year has seen a new set of special £1 books published.

In 2006, World Book Day began its support of and association with the Quick Reads^[1] initiative for adult emergent readers.

In 2007, World Book Day celebrated its 10th anniversary with the publication of 10 £1 books. Since then every child in full-time education in the UK and Ireland is entitled to receive a £1 World Book day Book token every year. They can swap their WBD token for one of specially-produced £1 WBD books or they can get £1 off a full-price book or audio book priced £2.99 or more.

In September 2007, World Book Day announced the revamp of the Spread the Word promotion for 2008 into an on-line book group featuring a number of adult books which would be suitable to book Groups. A short list of 10 titles was announced on 1 February 2008, and the winning book, Boy A by Jonathan Trigell (published by Serpent’s Tail) was revealed on World Book Day 2008, 6 March 2008.^[2] World Book Day 2008 was declared by The Bookseller magazine to be more successful than any previous World Book Day.^{[3]     :}Wikipedia

I myself do enjoy reading and like to encourage my children to read also. My eldest would much prefer to be read to, but my middle son is really beginning to get to grips with reading and is getting a lot more pleasure from a book, both fiction and non fiction. World Book Day does create a lot of excitement for us and dressing as our favorite book charater certainly stretches our imagination and creativity!

 I hope you can guess who we are?