School events and opportunities

Bring the magic of books and reading to your school – become a Reading School this year! The program provides practical resources, friendly support and a variety of accreditation levels designed to help you succeed and celebrate reading for pleasure in your school.

Explore our resources and apply now at readingschools.scot

Kickstart the reading journeys of individual classes, groups and pupils with the First Minister's Reading Challenge. Spark a love of reading with fun learning activities, author events and the chance to win a national award.

Register your class and get involved at readingchallenge.scot

Through Live Literature part–funded sessions we contribute over half the fees to run in-person and remote author sessions and events. Applications for funding are now open for sessions taking place before 31 March 2024.

Apply for Live Literature funding

Enter with stories, poems, spoken word pieces, comics, videos or other pieces of writing – we want to see it all, as long as it's in Scots and under 2500 words or up to ten minutes. Suitable for pupils ages 11–18.

Find out more about the Young Scots Writer o the Year Award

Any primary or secondary school class, library or community group in Scotland can register and submit to the First Minister's Reading Challenge. Celebrate the work you and the children have poured into creating a fun and engaging reading culture and be in the chance of winning an award.

Learn more about the First Minister's Reading Challenge.

Join Scottish Book Trust and Scotdec to discover how using picture books can facilitate a rights-based approach in your setting.

Register for Book Discovery CLPL session.

Applicable to Argyll and Bute schools only.

Contact the Reading Schools team to find out more.

Find out how to submit an entry to one of our reading challenges and why you should share and celebrate your reading journey!

Register for Submitting an entry to the First Minister's Reading Challenge CLPL session.

In this webinar, we will give advice and share best practice examples of how to collect and submit your Reading Schools evidence.

Suitable for: Learning professionals starting or in the middle of their Reading Schools journey preparing to submit their evidence.

Register for Collecting and submitting your Reading Schools evidence online Q&A

Join us for this year's Sharing Sensory Stories Authors Lab. Aimed at authors and storytellers with little to no previous experience in sensory storytelling, our two–day programme of seminars and workshops will teach you all the tools and give you the confidence you need to deliver stories in engaging and accessible ways.

Learn more about the Sharing Sensory Stories Authors Lab.

Betwitching in-person events with Hedgewitch author Skye McKenna at schools in Stirling and East and West Dunbartonshire.

Suitable for: P4–7

Learn more about the Scottish Friendly Children's Book Tour: Hedgewitch with Skye McKenna.

Discover how children's books can be used as meaningful context to explore mathematical and numeracy concepts within the Curriculum for Excellence framework.

Register for Connecting maths with stories CLPL session

Share the impact of your reading cultures and submit the First Minister's Reading Challenge for a chance to win a national award!

Learn more about the First Minister's Reading Challenge.

Join us for a drop in session with the Reading Schools team for an opportunity to ask for any help or advice on your Reading Schools accreditation application. You will also have the opportunity to network with other schools working towards their Reading Schools accreditation.

These sessions are suitable for all schools and will be held as a meeting on Microsoft Teams. The link to access the session will be emailed close to the event.

View dates and register for a drop-in session

Join us for this year's Sharing Sensory Stories Authors Lab. Aimed at authors and storytellers with little to no previous experience in sensory storytelling, our two–day programme of seminars and workshops will teach you all the tools and give you the confidence you need to deliver stories in engaging and accessible ways.

Learn more about the Sharing Sensory Stories Authors Lab.

Join us for an online shared practice showcase, full of presentations, breakout sessions, and the sharing of practical ideas and inspiration on how to engage families and communities. This event is a great opportunity for schools at any stage of their Reading Schools journey to hear from Reading schools who have been granted accreditation and discuss their successes and challenges. There will be opportunities to share practice together, speak to others across the country about their experiences, ask us questions, and come away inspired and enthused about Reading Schools.

Register for our Shared practice: engaging families and communities

The Scottish Friendly Book tour team are joining Joseph Coelho on his mission to join a library in every region in the country!

Suitable for: P1–4 classes in Orkney, Western Isles, Highland

Tour dates: 15–19 May 2023

Deadline for applications: Wednesday 29 March, 12 noon

Learn more about the Scottish Friendly Children's Book Tour with Joseph Coelho .

Join us for a drop in session with the Reading Schools team for an opportunity to ask for any help or advice on your Reading Schools accreditation application. You will also have the opportunity to network with other schools working towards their Reading Schools accreditation.

These sessions are suitable for all schools and will be held as a meeting on Microsoft Teams. The link to access the session will be emailed close to the event.

View dates and register for a drop-in session

Scottish ASN settings open over the summer holidays can apply for fully–funded, in–person author events. Further details to follow.