Readathon 85 in aid of the World Wildlife Fund

Monday, 20 May – Friday, 24 May 1985

Following on from the highly successful launch of Readathon last year which raised £136,500 for Mencap and got thousands of children reading for enjoyment in a good cause, Readathon 85 is joining forces with the World Wildlife Fund.

This year schools will have some choice in what happens to the money raised. Two special projects have been designated – one for saving the World’s Jungles, the other for conservation of the British Countryside. Another innovation is the provision of two Project Packs (sent to schools enrolling in Readathon 85 as part of the Readathon Pack) which teachers can use to arouse interest and increase understanding before the sponsored reading starts. The packs are devised by the World Wildlife Fund and include short stories (by writers who include Jan Mark) which will provoke talking and writing about the environment and endangered habitats.

It’s not necessary to stick to the dates given here. Some schools may prefer half-term and indeed any time in the Summer term will do – though you’ll miss out on the national publicity.

Last year nearly half a million books were read by children of all ages. The most distant readers were at La Chataignerie International School in Switzerland; in Scotland at the Royal Blind School in Edinburgh 20 children did their Readathon in Braille.