St George Illawarra Dragons Ambassador Dan Hunt was on hand to take part in the National Simultaneous Storytime reading at Wollongong City Library on Wednesday.
Hunt was one of several rugby league ambassadors taking part in the event which took place across kindergartens, childcare centres, bookshops and homes around Australia.
“It’s great to have the opportunity to encourage the fact that reading is cool and hopefully this day encourages those in attendance to give reading a go,” said Hunt.
“You need to be a competent reader in anything that you do so it is important to start at an early age.
”I enjoy reading magazines as well as getting lost in a good book which allows my imagination to create images from what the words on the pages describe.”
Over 500,000 children participated in the annual event having the same book, this year being ‘I Got This Hat; by Jol and Kate Temple, illustrated by Jon Foye and published by HarperCollins Children's Books.
“Each year there are some special events where the book is enjoyed with celebrity readers and we are thrilled the NRL joins us as a partner again so that footy stars read the book aloud at local events,” said Sue McKerracher, Australian Library and Information Association CEO.
‘This annual event now in its successful 16th year, aims to promote children’s literacy and turn children into lifelong readers by exciting them with stories.
“The National Simultaneous Storytime also promotes the important role libraries play in promoting literacy in communities around Australia.”
