Each spring and fall, families, educators, and book lovers across the country join together to celebrate Children’s Book Week – a cherished national event that honors the power of stories and the magic of books. Children’s Book Week highlights the importance of reading for pleasure and imagination, encouraging children of all ages to fall in love with books.

As we approach the first Children’s Book Week of 2025, happening from May 5th to May 11th, it’s the perfect time to dive into reading traditions, explore new stories, and make books an exciting part of daily life. Whether you’re a parent, teacher, librarian, or young reader, there’s something special waiting for everyone.

What is Children’s Book Week?

Established in 1919, Children’s Book Week is the longest-running national literacy initiative in the United States. It was created to promote reading among children and has since evolved into a vibrant week-long celebration held each spring and fall. During this week, schools, libraries, bookstores, and homes light up with storytelling events, author readings, book giveaways, and reading challenges.

Children’s Book Week encourages kids to see reading not just as a school task, but as a lifelong source of adventure, creativity, and connection. Just like World Book Day, this celebration fosters a sense of community around books and ensures every child has the opportunity to discover stories that speak to them.

What is the theme for Children’s Book Week 2025?

Each year, Children’s Book Week features a new theme to inspire young readers and spark creativity. Past themes like “Read. Dream. Share.” and “Reading Is a Superpower” have encouraged kids to see reading as both fun and empowering.

The Children’s Book Week theme for 2025 is An Ocean of Stories, celebrating the vast, collective ocean populated by the stories we read, share, and tell. You can find fun resources to support Children’s Book Week – like bookmarks, activity pages, and more – from the Children’s Book Council here.

Why celebrate Children’s Book Week?

There are countless reasons to celebrate Children’s Book Week, but at its core, the week is about nurturing a love of reading. This week can be used as a time to focus on:

• Promoting literacy: Regular reading helps build vocabulary, improve reading comprehension, and support academic success.
• Inspiring imagination: Books open doors to new worlds and ideas, helping children dream big and think creatively.
• Building emotional intelligence: Through characters and narratives, children learn empathy, resilience, and perspective.
• Strengthening family bonds: Reading together is a bonding experience that encourages discussion, connection, and quality time.
• Celebrating all readers: The week celebrates diverse voices and stories, making sure every child feels seen in the pages they turn.

Ways to celebrate Children’s Book Week

There are endless ways to celebrate Children’s Book Week both at home and in the classroom. Here are a few ideas to get started:

1. Daily reading challenge: Set a goal to read every day during the week, tracking progress with stickers or a calendar.
2. Create a reading nook: Set up a cozy, decorated corner filled with books, pillows, and soft lighting.
3. Dress as book characters: Let kids dress up as their favorite literary heroes for a fun, themed day.
4. Host a book swap: Encourage children to trade their favorite reads with classmates or neighbors.
5. Book-themed crafts: Make bookmarks, character masks, or mini comic books inspired by favorite stories.
6. Write your own book: Challenge students to write and illustrate their own stories.
7. Storytime events: Invite local authors or parents to read aloud during a special classroom or library event.
8. Vote for favorite books: Host a book award where kids nominate and vote for their top picks.

Celebrate Children’s Book Week with Storytime AI

From May 5–11, Storytime AI is joining the celebration of Children’s Book Week with an exciting challenge that makes reading even more rewarding.

This week only, kids can earn double credits for reading in the app. By simply claiming the daily reward and reading each day, your child will receive 2 credits per day – double the usual amount! Even better, they’ll earn extra bonus credits for hitting reading streak milestones: a 2-day streak and a full 7-day streak unlock additional rewards.

These credits can be used to create personalized, illustrated books and videos starring your child. Whether you’re looking for a bedtime story, an epic adventure, or a heartwarming lesson about kindness or courage, Storytime AI has something for every reader.

Inside the app, you’ll also find the Discover Library – a curated collection of thousands of free, pre-made stories and videos. Families can enjoy reading together, remixing stories to fit their interests, or creating a new favorite from scratch.

This Children’s Book Week challenge is the perfect chance to build positive reading habits and reward kids for consistency and creativity.

Why Storytime AI is perfect for Children’s Book Week

Storytime AI makes it easy to integrate reading into daily routines in fun, personalized ways. Here’s why it’s the perfect tool for celebrating Children’s Book Week:

• Personalized adventures: Children can become the hero of their own stories or craft a story related to their specific interests, boosting engagement and excitement.
• Narrated read-alongs: For beginning readers, soothing narration helps support literacy and confidence.
• Custom visuals: AI-generated illustrations bring stories to life with vibrant, child-friendly art.
• Multilingual options: Storytime AI supports 194 languages, making it inclusive for bilingual learners.
• Easy access: Available on mobile and web, parents and teachers can use it anytime, anywhere.
• Culturally relevant: Tell diverse, representative stories with the ability to create characters and stories that feel authentic to every child.

Make the most of Children’s Book Week

Whether you’re just discovering Children’s Book Week or it’s already a beloved tradition in your home or classroom, this is the perfect opportunity to make reading more magical, meaningful, and fun.

Use this week to explore stories that reflect your child’s imagination, values, and dreams. And don’t forget to take advantage of special events – like the double credit challenge from Storytime AI – to make the experience even more exciting.

Grab your favorite book, curl up with your child, and celebrate Children’s Book Week in the best way possible: by getting lost in a great story!

🎉 Happy Children’s Book Week from all of us at Storytime AI.