International Literacy Day ideas for OSHC
11 DIY activities for International Literacy Day at before and after school care or vacation care. Pick and mix, or build a balanced day in one click.
Big and Little Reading Buddies
Older children pair up with younger ones to share picture books, then talk together about why being able to read matters and that many people worldwide are still learning.
International Mother Language Day · National Simultaneous Storytime · Book Week +3Bilingual Storytime With Families
A cosy storytime where a family member or educator reads a picture book in a home language and English, so children hear how the same story sounds in two languages.
International Mother Language Day · Around the World Day · International Literacy Day +2Borrowed Words Detective Relay
Teams race to match everyday English words, like kangaroo, pyjamas and tsunami, to the languages they came from, discovering how languages share and borrow.
International Literacy Day · Cardboard Box Day · Maker Day +2Build a Little Book Library
Children design, build and decorate a book-sharing box for the service, then stock it with donated books so everyone can take one and leave one.
International Literacy Day · Chalk Festival · Games Day +1Giant Letter Hop and Spell
Children toss a beanbag onto a giant chalk letter grid in the yard, then hop from letter to letter to spell words.
International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples · International Mother Language Day · NAIDOC Week +2Indigenous Languages Listening Lab
Children listen to short official recordings of Indigenous languages from Australia and around the world, then mark each language on a map and talk about why keeping languages alive matters.
Torres Strait Islander Culture · International Mother Language Day · Mabo Day +2Languages of the Torres Strait
Children discover the main languages of the Torres Strait, Meriam Mir, Kala Lagaw Ya and Yumplatok (Torres Strait Creole), and make word cards from an official or community resource.
International Literacy Day · International Mother Language Day · Harmony Day +2Many Languages Word Wall
Children and families add words from the languages spoken at home, such as 'hello', 'book' and 'friend', building a colourful wall that celebrates many ways of reading and writing.
International Mother Language Day · World Book Day · International Literacy Day +2Scripts of the World Bookmarks
Children explore different writing systems, from Bengali to Korean to Arabic, and copy a word or their name in a script they choose onto a decorated bookmark.
International Literacy Day · Spy School · Detective Day +2Secret Code Wheel Messages
Children make paper code wheels that shift the alphabet, then write secret messages for friends to decode.
International Literacy Day · Treasure Hunters Day · Outdoor ExplorersWord Spotter Scavenger Hunt
Children explore the service and yard hunting for words on signs, labels and posters, ticking off letters, sounds or word types on a checklist.