Peter H. Reynolds Partners with the Boch Center for World Read Aloud Day Event

New York Times #1 best-selling children’s book author/illustrator Peter H. Reynolds is returning to the Boch Center with a reading of his book The Word Collector as well as an interactive workshop with the Boch Center Education team at the historic Shubert Theatre on Wednesday, February 7, 2024 at 10:00AM ET to celebrate World Read Aloud Day.

Virtual live-stream registration for the event is available here.  

As part of the World Read Aloud celebration, Reynolds will also share a sneak peek of his brand-new storybook, which will release on March 5th - called The Reflection In Me. Kirkus Reviews noted that, “This empowering, beautifully written book makes clear that children—all of us, actually—need, at least occasionally, to give ourselves a good pep talk to remind ourselves of our value, talents, integrity, kindness, and goodness…even if we say those things only to ourselves.”

World Read Aloud Day is a day that celebrates the power of reading aloud to create community, amplify new stories and advocate for literacy as a foundational human right. World Read Aloud Day is a global movement of millions of readers, writers, and listeners from communities across the world coming together to honor the joy and power of reading and sharing stories and expand the definition and scope of global literacy.

In-person, the Boch Center expects to have well over 1,000 students from Boston Public Schools, Chelsea Public Schools, and more. To date, there are over 1,000 classrooms and schools registered for the live stream from coast to coast and 16 countries worldwide including Australia, Argentina, China, Croatia, India, Japan, Romania, Sierra Leone, United Arab Emirates, among others with the estimated virtual audience at 20,000 students.

“We are thrilled to announce our participation in World Real Aloud Day and our continued partnership with the extraordinary Peter Reynolds for the second year in a row,” said Josiah Spaulding, President and CEO of the Boch Center. “This event embodies our commitment to education, community engagement and the transformative power of storytelling and we invite everyone to join us virtually on our Shubert Theatre stage.”

The upcoming World Read Aloud Day event is a part of an ongoing partnership between the Boch Center and FableVision/ Reynolds TLC. The organizations will also partner on future Boch Center Interactive Readings programs. Through innovative storytelling techniques, the Boch Center brings these stories to life in Boston-area neighborhoods with our professional teaching artists. In the last few years, the Boch Center has visited community and local sites such as Faneuil Hall Marketplace, Boston Centers for Youth and Families, Boston Public Libraries, Boys & Girls Clubs, early education centers, and hospitals in the Boston area. To date, Interactive Readings have reached nearly 8,000 children.