I must admit, I frequently feel a bit anxious about arranging library events, and World Book Day is the Behemoth of library event days. For months the School Libraries Association sends out messages about dressing up and World Book Day activities. In the past, I have created Geography displays (world books, geddit?) and told myself ‘Next year, I might actually have the energy to engage in something more exciting’.

But, having worked at Chetham’s for five years now (five!), I finally bit the booklet and got involved properly. Or at least, as properly involved as a school music librarian with a mildly crippling anxiety of overexposure can be expected to be.

It started with a staff email from the Academic Principal, asking several relevant staff members to let the Comms Department know if we were planning anything for World Book Day. That afternoon, the Head of Lower School responded that the younger students would be encouraged to dress up as book characters and there would be a D-E-A-R (Drop Everything And Read) event at 12pm.

After the half term, the English Department also got back to the Comms team to say that the Y7s and Y8s were given free books by the Book Trust and would be doing a blind-date with a book activity. They also suggested KS3 students could join the Drop Everything And Read event.

So far, so nothing from the School Library.

In a brainstorm session with the library assistant, Charlotte Stevenson-Stoddard, she suggested she could make some decorations if we asked for some card from the Art Department. I internally balked at the idea of dipping into another department’s budget, but when I asked the Head of Art, Alison Boothroyd, she was really lovely and let me come over and select a piece of card in every colour she had – and two in white!

I told the Comms team that the school library’s participation would be a Draw-Your-Favourite-Character station for the full week, and the students’ contributions would be added to the library display. We had also been sent the World Book Day Tokens, so the students were told they could collect these from the library desk.

The Monday before World Book Day, I brought in some new colouring pens from home to join the colouring materials the library already had, and I put up the characters that Charlotte had created during her weekend shift: a patchwork Elmer Elephant, a Matilda Wormwood, an open book, a giant Paddington Bear, and a library signpost.

Louise Fogg, the Head of Learning Support, was really supportive of the display, but was correct that the characters sort of faded into the white backboard. She gave me four A3 pieces of yellow paper (coincidentally almost exactly the World Book Day colour!) that I put up to make the display ‘pop’.

In Canva, I created and printed off about twenty initial Draw Your Favourite Book Character sheets, and I laid out the drawing station on our long wooden study table in the main library. Taking inspiration from the Chinese Reading Corner opening the school library hosted in January, I initially set up along the full table. However, without three staff continuously operating the station, it mostly resembled an austere set of worksheets.

That first Monday morning break, I asked some Juniors who had been very keen during the Reading Corner opening if they wanted to draw a character. But whether it was the uninviting worksheet spread, or simply nerves of being the first one to put themselves out there, once one of them said no, none of the others wanted to do it either.

One child admitted she didn’t know who to draw. Although I offered alternatives – it didn’t need to be a favourite character, and suggested she could copy a picture from a book – my encouragements were still insufficient to slay the dragon of being the first participant.

So, I regrouped.

I tightened the station to occupy just one end of the table, which made it look less sprawling and freed up space for non-participants to still use the table to study at. And I drew a couple of example characters, Willy Wonka and Greg from Wimpy Kid, propping them up on a book display easel. As I was drawing, a Year 8 who happened to be passing said that the table looked nice. That Monday lunchtime (miracle of miracles!) she was back with a group of her friends to draw more Wimpy Kid, Dora the Explorer and Shrek!

After the first few pictures, the display started to take off. One little girl said her favourite character was Coco from Witch Hat Atelier but she didn’t want to draw her. I made her a deal that I would draw her a Coco if she drew any character, so she drew a cowboy with a big hat, and I drew Coco.

Since the display was up for several days, students who had lessons and study sessions in the library sometimes joined in too. This meant that a Year 10 group who come into the library first thing on Tuesdays, the Choristers who get extra library prep sessions, and the Y7 literacy class all had scheduled opportunities to add their contributions.

I also asked the library prefect to create one, and she enlisted her friend’s contributions. So by the end of Wednesday, we had the full gallimaufry from Y4-Y13 – and a range of favourite media from Peppa Pig, through the web comic Lord of the Mysteries to Gregor Samsa from Metamorphosis!

By the time World Book Day itself came around on the Thursday, the board was already a chaotic collage of characters that I had rearranged several times to make room for them all.

And the additions kept coming. We got Bunny vs Monkey, and Spy x Family and Peter Rabbit and Dork Diaries and the Book Thief and more Peppa Pigs and Doras the Explorers. One child even drew Unc Status, which I think is a meme(?). On the subject of memes, I asked my group of Duke of Edinburgh volunteers to create pictures for the display, and I received a range of submissions from Up to Family Guy’s Peter Griffin to YouTube “Brainrot” characters who I’d never heard of but researched as best I could to check they were school-appropriate.

I was delighted by every single addition, but my favourite was the Heartstopper drawing by one of the Choristers. She is a little self-deprecating, and when I told her I really liked her drawing she corrected me very seriously that, “It isn’t that good.” Nonetheless, there were several comments throughout the week that her drawing was very good, which was wonderful to hear.

Having the station set up throughout the week worked particularly well, allowing for the slow start and refinement to take wheels. I loved to see how excited the students (and some staff) were to see the board. They tried to work out who had drawn what and showed off their contributions to their friends (which sometimes inspired more drawings!)

If there’s anything I learned from the activity, it was mostly just the repeated positive reinforcement that every time the students at Chetham’s are given the opportunity to participate in an activity (whether that’s a Chinese Book Corner opening, a Bookmark Competition, a Reading Challenge, or a World Book Day drawing station) they are significantly more on board (in this case, literally) than I fear they might be during the preparation and planning stages.

Yes, future Kirsty, when you’re reading this back and worrying about whatever next library initiative you’re planning – even that one too!