Let’s Hook into Books, and celebrate Indigenous Literacy Day 2025.
Image: Two young people hold up books over their faces. Infront of them on the table another four books are laid out.
Children are watching, learning, and mirroring the actions of adults every day. Modelling behaviour for children has long-lasting effects, this is how children learn! You are an important person in the lives of many children – meaning that they are watching and learning from you every day. So, let’s put this opportunity to good use and model reading.
You can do simple everyday things to encourage children to engage with reading. Creating excitement around literacy can start by reading to them and with them, or with a fun activity like a trip to the library where they can select their own book.
Image: Two children sit outdoors, holding up books.
Be ‘caught reading’
To celebrate Hook into Books™ and Indigenous Literacy Day 2025, we want you to be ‘caught’ reading a book written or illustrated by an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander creator.
Reading books from First Nations authors helps us all to understand Australia's collective history and appreciate the cultural richness of stories from some of the most ancient and original storytellers.
This year, Indigenous Literacy Day will be celebrating the theme, 'Strength in Our Stories. For Now and Future Generations’. There is an amazing range of rich and diverse texts from First Nations Creators to get emersed in.
Image: A collage of children reading books.
How to get involved and #CatchAReader?
From Monday, 19 August to Wednesday, 3 September, we want you to model reading for our community in our photo-sharing competition.
To 'catch’ a reader, snap a photo of someone (or even yourself) reading a book from an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander creator! For little kids or kids in foster care, make sure the book covers their faces to protect them. You can also take a picture of your latest book or magazine or even a cute Kindle flat lay.
Your ‘reading catches’ can be celebrated and shared on Indigenous Literacy Day with the Life Without Barriers community by sending them to hookintobooks@lwb.org.au. There’s even a book pack prize to be won for the most creative ‘catch’!
How many ‘catches’ can you make?
Why Hook into Books™?
Hook into Books™ is a national campaign led by the Learning Without Barriers team. The Education team aspires to see all children and young people in out-of-home care (OOHC) are given opportunities to enhance their own literacy story.
We know that the benefits of reading, listening, and telling stories to children of any age are endless. The benefits of early literacy are evidenced widely; however, this journey continues right through into adolescence (and beyond). For young people, literacy is a key mental health protective factor. Young people who are literate are more likely to remain engaged in education and community, have confidence in navigating the increasingly complex world and remain connected with supportive people in their lives.
We all have a role to play in supporting children and young people's ongoing learning and educational engagement. Why not have a bit of fun at the same time and hook into a book with us?
Download our Hook into Books 2025 Assets and help spread the word.
