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To celebrate this year's 4.23 World Book Day, the Leisure and Cultural Services Department's Hong Kong Public Libraries (HKPL) have organised the 4.23 World Book Day Creative Competition under the theme "Read the World". The competition aims to nurture a good reading habit and an interest in writing among children and young people, and encourage them to learn more about other cultures to expand their global outlook. The prize presentation ceremony was held today (April 25) at Hong Kong Central Library.
Speaking at the ceremony, the Director of Leisure and Cultural Services, Ms Michelle Li, said that reading opened a window in our lives, enabling us to advance our knowledge and explore the world without the need to travel.
She noted that the competition has received an enthusiastic response this year, with over 1,300 entries from more than 200 schools.
Other guests attending the presentation ceremony included the Senior Curriculum Development Officer of the Education Bureau, Miss Yvonne Lam; the Director of the Academic Department of the Hong Kong Professional Teachers' Union, Ms Chan Hong-ching; the President of the Hong Kong Teacher-Librarians' Association, Ms Karen Ip; the President of the Hong Kong Reading Association, Dr Lornita Wong; and the Manager (Media Relations (Greater China)) of the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, Mr Joshua Cheng.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) designated April 23 as World Book Day to promote reading worldwide and pay tribute to distinguished writers. In support of the event, the HKPL has organised the 4.23 World Book Day Creative Competition since 2004 under a different theme each year to broaden the scope of students' reading. Participants are encouraged to read materials related to the theme, and express their ideas in words and drawings, thus cultivating a habit of reading and an interest in writing.
This year's competition consisted of four categories - junior primary students designed postcard covers to introduce a book in the form of a graphic drawing that also showed their understanding of the world; senior primary students wrote a letter to a teacher or family member to introduce a book and express their feelings about people living in a different culture, including their efforts to strive for improvement; junior secondary students produced a book report on reading materials related to "wise living"; and senior secondary students wrote an essay discussing global co-operation and world harmony.
Winning entries were selected for each category, including 25 for junior primary, 15 each for senior primary Chinese and junior secondary Chinese, 12 for senior secondary Chinese, eight each for senior primary English and junior secondary English, and five for senior secondary English. The winning works are unique in their own way, showing strong sentiments, innovative ideas and creative thought.
The winning students were awarded with "super passes" for free admission to the Hong Kong Book Fair 2015, contributed by the supporting organisation - the Hong Kong Trade Development Council.
Winning works from the competition will be put on display at the Exhibition Gallery of the Hong Kong Central Library from tomorrow (April 26) to May 7, followed by a roving exhibition at 18 public libraries. The winning works will also be uploaded to the HKPL website.
This creative competition is part of the ongoing Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau library collaboration and exchange programme. Shenzhen Library, the Sun Yat-Sen Library of Guangdong Province and Macao Central Library also organised competitions under the theme "Read the World". The winning works will be displayed in their respective libraries.
In addition, a meet-the-authors talk under the theme "Reading - To Broaden Our Horizons" will be held from 2.30pm to 4pm today at the Lecture Theatre of the HKCL. The Director of the University of Hong Kong School of Professional and Continuing Education, Professor Lee Chack-fan, will use prominent figures from ancient and contemporary history as examples to show how reading helped to pave their way to success. The talk will be conducted in Cantonese. Admission is free.
For programme enquiries, please visit the HKPL website, www.hkpl.gov.hk/en/extension-activities/event-category/23428/4-23-world-book-day, or call 2921 2660.
Ends/Saturday, April 25, 2015
Issued at HKT 13:18
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