News Alert |

What: Ballarat Libraries presents Australian Reading Hour at The Eureka Centre 

Where: The Eureka Centre, Stawell Street South, Ballarat 

When: Tomorrow – Thursday 20 September, 11.30am-12.30pm 

Want to escape with a good book? Well, there’s never been a better excuse!  

Ballarat Libraries will present the Australian Reading Hour at The Eureka Centre tomorrow – encouraging people to take the time to pick up a book and learn, grow, escape and relax. 

As part of the event, community members will be able to pull up a bean bag and listen to City of Ballarat Cr Amy Johnson, City of Ballarat Children’s and Youth Librarian Julie Bull and renowned Daylesford storyteller Anne E Stewart each read a book to the group. 

The initiative is part of a national campaign, supported by the Australian Government, encouraging people to discover or rediscover the benefits of reading. 

According to the Australian Reading Hour:

reading helps with children’s identity formation, setting them up for success in the future  reading reduces stress in adults by 68 per cent more than listening to music, going for a walk or having a cup of tea  reading increases literacy and numeracy skills, and has a positive and significant effect on jobs  children who know adults who read for pleasure take it for granted that reading is valuable  the more leisure books people read, the more literate they become and the more prosperous and equitable the society they inhabit  reading a gripping novel causes positive biological changes in the brain that can last for days  when tested for empathy, readers of narrative fiction achieved significantly higher than other groups, and  reading to children six to seven days a week puts them almost a year ahead of children not being read to. 

Bookings can be made at Ballarat Libraries, phone 5338 6850 or online at Eventbrite 

 https://www.eventbrite.com.au/myevent?eid=49120965129 

For more information visit readinghour.org.au