Family Reading Fiesta: Fun Activities for National Read Across America Day

National Reading Month kicks off with Read Across America Day on March 2nd, and one of the best things about it this year is that it's on a weekend! It's a day filled with literary adventures and the fact that it’s also Dr. Seuss's birthday means there is definitely cake involved!

National Read Across America Day is a day dedicated to the joy of reading and it’s the perfect opportunity to foster a love for reading and fill the day with a family fun fiesta.

We have so many exciting things in store for you and your family—from bookish breakfasts to adventures into new worlds—we can’t wait to get going!

A Dr. Seuss Bookish Breakfast

Breakfast is the most important meal and a great way to start National Read Across America Day. Dr. Seuss’s books are filled with bright, colorful characters, making them the perfect theme for a breakfast celebrating the joy of reading! Here are some creative, Seuss-inspired ideas to get you started:

Green Eggs and Ham

No Dr. Seuss breakfast would be complete without this iconic dish! Simply add food coloring to turn scrambled eggs green and serve them with a side of ham. 

Cat in the Hat Parfaits

Layer strawberries and Greek yogurt to mimic the Cat in the Hat’s famous red and white striped hat.

Truffula Tree Fruit Skewers

Inspired by The Lorax, make fruit skewers using colorful fruits like strawberries, grapes, blueberries, and pineapple. 

Who-ville Whoberry Pancakes

Serve up fluffy pancakes topped with mixed berries (Whoberries!) and a dollop of whipped cream. Adding food coloring to the pancake batter will make them even more colorful and fun. Remember, the key to a successful themed breakfast is not just about the food but also the decorations. You can use brightly colored tablecloths and napkins, add a few Dr. Seuss quotes, and even dress up as your favorite Dr. Seuss characters to add to the fun.

Family Reading Fun

Families that read together, stay together—well, that’s what we think. We all love being read to, and there is something quite special about reading together as a family. Now that you’ve eaten breakfast, it’s the perfect time to sit back and relax with a great book.

Grab an exciting adventure or mystery, depending on your children’s ages, and let storytime begin. Don’t worry, you don’t need to finish the book in one day; perhaps you want to dedicate the next few Saturday mornings to reading a few chapters at a time. Who knows, you may have just started a whole new family tradition!

It is also the ideal opportunity to chat about the book, ask questions, and get communication going. You can even add a twist, and each member of the family can write alternative endings. 

Bookish Crafts

Who doesn’t love bookish crafts? Fortunately, platforms like YouTube and Pinterest are full of inspiration and ideas! Celebrating the joy of reading through bookish crafts is a fantastic way to combine creativity with your love for literature. Here are a few to get the creative juices flowing!

Fairy Tale Mason Jar Lanterns

Materials: 

Mason jars, fairy lights (battery-operated), translucent paper, glue, brushes, silhouettes of fairy tale characters.

Instructions: 

Firstly, you need to cut the translucent paper to fit inside the mason jar. You can then glue silhouettes of fairy tale characters on the inside of the paper. Next up, simply wrap the paper inside the mason jar, securing it with a little bit of glue if necessary. And for the final step and the fun part—insert the fairy lights into the mason jar and you’re ready to go. These lanterns create a magical atmosphere and are perfect for your reading nook.

Story Stones

Materials: 

Smooth stones, acrylic paint, paintbrushes, Modge Podge.

Instructions: 

Start off by painting each stone with a base color and let it dry thoroughly. Now, you can paint simple images or words from your favorite books or literary genres on each stone. Once they are dry, you will need to seal the stones with Modge Podge. 

These stones are perfect for story-telling prompts, game pieces, or decorative reminders of your favorite stories and obviously a permanent reminder of family fun!

Family Storybook

Materials: 

Construction paper, markers, stickers, photos, glue, hole punch, ribbon or binder rings.

Instructions: 

We love creating family storybooks! Each family member needs to create one or two pages for the storybook. Let their creativity flow—it can be anything from drawing pictures to writing stories, or even adding photos. 

Now it’s time to put your family masterpiece together. Assemble the pages in order and punch holes on the side. Then you’re ready to bind the pages together using ribbon or binder rings. And perhaps you can take a tip from us and add your own surprise gifts to bring your family’s story to life that special Once Upon a Book Club way!

We love personalized family keepsakes that we can cherish forever. Don’t let this be a one-off, make it a monthly family activity and watch your binder grow with memories and happy moments!

Character Puppets

Materials: 

Popsicle sticks, cardboard, markers, fabric scraps, glue, scissors.

Instructions: 

These are such fun to make no matter how old you are! Simply draw or print out pictures of your family’s favorite book characters and glue them onto cardboard for extra strength. 

Once they are dry, cut out the characters and attach them to popsicle sticks. You can even use fabric scraps to create mini costumes or added accessories for each of the characters. We love using these puppets to tell stories and they even make great bookmarks!

Conclusion

National Read Across America Day is a golden opportunity to bring your family closer together through the joy of reading. Family reading is a shared adventure and is bound to bring you all closer together as you laugh, create, and discover your own literary wonderland.

This year, let National Read Across America Day be the start of a new tradition in your home. One that celebrates the stories that bring you together and the imaginative journeys they take you on. So gather your books, unleash your creativity, and let the reading fiesta begin!

We love bringing books to life and with our monthly subscriptions, we have something for everyone. Don’t forget to practice self-care and spoil yourself with a fabulous monthly book box subscription. It's the gift that keeps on giving!

Our Adult box typically includes one, newly released book of the following genres:

• Women's Fiction
• Magical Realism
• Contemporary Fiction
• Historical Fiction
• Mystery & Thriller

Each adult book box also contains 3 to 5 wrapped gifts labeled with corresponding page numbers which have been carefully selected to bring the pages to life. As the story captivates your imagination and you find yourself being transported to another world, your reading pleasure is enhanced as you are prompted to open each gift at certain page numbers.

Our adult book boxes also contain extras like the Book Club Kit, which is full of information and activities which simply adds to your reading experience. Our bookmarks and quote cards are custom-designed each month, containing a quote from the novel, and most of our boxes contain signed bookplates autographed by the author. Yes, it is like having a birthday every month!