One Day, One Story returns for a 10th season!
One Day One Story, Pratham Books’ annual storytelling campaign is back again for its 10th edition! Every year on September 8th, we celebrate International Literacy Day with children and Reading Champions all over India to promote the joy of reading. Over the years, our Reading Champions have conducted storytelling sessions reaching hundreds of thousands of children across India and the world. Last year, children and Reading Champions from all over the country laughed out loud with T. Sundari who just could not stop laughing, and learned how to deal with their emotions with Angry Akku.
Why One Day, One Story?
One Day, One Story is a part of our commitment to our mission of getting ‘a book in every child’s hand’, and sharing the joy of reading with as many children as possible. Every year on September 8th, our Reading Champions conduct storytelling sessions of the two selected books for children in their communities.
The story so far
The campaign that was typically conducted as an on-ground event up until 2019, was transformed into a virtual event in 2020 due to the Covid 19 pandemic. Nearly 2,000 Reading Champions rose to the challenge, conducting 3,000+ virtual storytelling sessions for 30,000 children. Through Pratham Books’ social media channels, the campaign was amplified to over 4 lakh people.
As the pandemic has continued into 2021, One Day, One Story is going to be conducted as a virtual event this year as well.
The two books for ODOS 2021 are Satya, Watch Out!, a Level 2 book written by Yamini Vijayan and illustrated by Vishnu M Nair for younger kids, and Puchku Seeks a Song, a Level 3 book written by Deepanjana Pal and illustrated by Rajiv Eipe for older kids. Both storybooks are super fun and filled with action and adventure. We hope they bring joy and cheer to children who have been stuck at home for over a year!
Sign up to participate in One Day, One Story here!
How does it work?
You can conduct a virtual storytelling session through Zoom or Whatsapp with a group of children, or on Facebook, Instagram or Youtube Live.
OR you could record your storytelling of either (or both!) of the books on your mobile phone and share it on social media with the hashtag #OneDayOneStory2021. You could take it one step further and tag a friend to do a reading of the books! And don’t forget to tag us too – we’re on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn and Youtube.
Check out some basic tips on how to record yourself telling the story.
Whichever storybook or platform you choose, we would love for you to use it in creative ways – read, narrate, enact… to make it fun for children to watch and listen to.
So mark your calendar for September 8th, and join thousands of Reading Champions sharing their love for reading with children everywhere!
Write to [email protected] with any questions or queries.
Frequently Asked Questions
- This is the first time I am conducting an event. How should I prepare for it?
Read the book a few times. If you are reading to a younger age group, see how you can tell the story without actually reading from the book (to retain their attention). Think of activities to engage the children after the storytelling. Alternatively, read a few more stories around the same theme.
- Can I conduct multiple storytelling sessions online?
Yes, you can! The aim is to reach as many kids as possible. You can do more than one session on more than one day, on or after September 8th. The more the merrier.
- Will I be receiving physical copies of the books?
Due to the Covid-19 pandemic and ensuing logistical difficulties, we will not be dispatching physical copies of the books and banners for One Day, One Story this year. You can access e-copies of the two storybooks in multiple languages here. You could read the story aloud from a digital device, like a laptop, iPad or mobile phone, or you could print out the book on A4 paper and hold it up while you read.
- Should I document the event?
Yes, please! You can send us the storytelling video you make, a write-up and tag us on social media when you share your video!
- I really want to conduct a session but I am not free on September 8th. What should I do?
The aim of One Day, One Story is to spread the joy of reading to children. You can still conduct it any day in September… because children getting to listen to a fun story is much more important than a date, right? This year, we are running One Day, One Story all through September 2021.
- How do I conduct a virtual storytelling session?
Once you sign up for One Day, One Story, check out these tips on how to take a video of yourself reading out the story using a mobile phone. If you are conducting a live storytelling session with a group of children on Zoom, Whatsapp or Instagram/Facebook Live, you would need to keep in mind all the things you would normally do when doing a storytelling session in-person – the only difference is that it’s online!
Need some inspiration or references? Check out this playlist of ReadAlouds done by celebrities and other Reading Champions for One Day, One Story 2020 here.
Individuals sign up here and organisations can sign up here.
See you in September!
