To celebrate International Literacy Day, the International Reading Association (IRA) and Sony Pictures Animation will host an “Invent Your Future”-themed Twitter chat on Sept. 9 at 8 p.m. (EST). Participants may join using the hashtag #IRAchat.
From Sept. 10-30, teachers may submit stories, photos, and videos to IRA about how they celebrated this year’s International Literacy Day for a chance to win a new 16GB Sony Xperia tablet (retail value: $499). The contest is open from Sept. 10-30, 2013, and the official registration form is available at www.reading.org/ILD13contest.
IRA adopted the “Invent Your Future” theme for the 2013 celebration in conjunction of Sony Pictures Animation’s upcoming Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2, which will be released on Sept. 27. The goal is to inspire students to dream big about their future—just like inventor Flint Lockwood, the main character of the film—and illustrate the crucial role literacy skills play in achieving those dreams.
To encourage educators and librarians to share the message that strong literacy skills pave the pathway to future success, IRA developed an activity kit with educational ideas for students ages 5-15+. The activity kit is accessible through Sony Pictures Animation’s site, www.Cloudy2LiteracyActivities.com.
The first 150 teachers who fill out a registration form on the Sony Pictures site will receive a free copy of the original Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs book, by Judi Barrett and Ron Barrett, courtesy of Simon & Schuster. Teachers may also request Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 movie posters and activity books.
 and Sony Pictures Animation will host an "Invent Your Future"-themed Twitter chat on Sept. 9 at 8 p.m. (EST). Participants may join using the hashtag #IRAchat.){kind=link}