Kulttuurikeskus Ninho is once again celebrating the International Day of Children’s and Youth Literature on 6.4.2024. This year, we’re co-producing a free multilingual party for all families at Oodi Library with Selkokulttuuri ry and Familia ry! The project Reading Together is funded by Moniheli, and brings concerts, workshops, and, of course, multilingual storytelling sessions. A beautiful program around children’s literature that you can’t miss! Welcome to celebrate Helsinki’s diversity through children’s literature!
In its third edition, Reading Together has become one of Kulttuurikeskus Ninho ry’s most traditional events. A multilingual gathering born within our Lukupesä project, which has gradually managed to bring more and more associations and people on board.
Simultaneously, we have succeeded in promoting a peer-to-peer Children’s Literature and Diversity Network to co-produce accessible, free, open, and safe spaces for newly arrived and multicultural families. Thanks to collective effort of associations, institutions and cultural workers, this network offers free spaces for all families to enjoy their heritage language through culture.
If you are interested in joining our network, please fill in our FORM! We will contact you to give you more information 😉.
Moreover, this year we are very excited because the Global Music Department – University of the Arts Helsinki will enrich lots of Reading Nest with music, and offer a concert to kick off the activities program.
Children’s band MeNiños, born thanks to the impulse of our association, will feature the closing concert.
Find in this article all the activities, info about the bands, storytellers and the associations involved, and more materials to easily enjoy Reading Together!
📚 Multilingual storytelling in 13 languages to celebrate the International Day of Children’s Book 2024 in Helsinki
Reading Together is a polyphonic encounter of families to celebrate our plurilingual city around children’s literature. A moment for children to enjoy beautiful stories with their families, in their heritage language. Together, we create future joyful memories for our children.
This time, most of the storytellers will be accompanied by musicians, who will enrich the stories with traditional instruments! Also, remember most of the books are chosen from the Helmet system, so you can book them and take them home to enjoy with your children.
That’s why we welcome you to come to Oodi Library next 6.4.2024 and enjoy multilingual storytelling sessions.
Find the storytelling in your language and don’t miss it!
Turkish: Nur Koca (TR), educator and storyteller. Musician: Melisa Yıldırım (TR) will play anatolian kamancha.
📌 2 – 3 pm | Event Room.
Associations: FIN POLAR ry and Global Music Department – Uniart
Arabic: Samah Zahlaf (PS).
📌 2 – 3 pm | Balcony (above Event room).
Association: Mirsal ry.
English and Finnish: Wende Luvinga (TZ) & Laura Hytti (FI).
📌 2 – 3 pm. Windows carpet.
Association: Familia ry.
Italian: Tania Carluccio (IT), educator and language & literature expert. Livia Schweizer (Italy), will play flute.
📌 2 – 3 pm. Orage Room.
Association: Istituto Italiano di Cultura di Helsinki & Global Music Department – Uniarts.
Farsi: Mahsa Khoshnejad (IR) educator. Musician: Sara Majidinejad (IR) will play Qanun.
📌 3 – 4 pm | Main carpet.
Associations: Familia ry & Global Music Department – Uniarts.
Portuguese: Luciana Faria Pereira Paltila (BR), educator and storyteller, & Sofia Santos (PT), educator and storyteller. Musician: Sami Karkar (FR/TN) will play percussion.
📌 3 – 4 pm | Event Room
Associations: APPF – Associação de Professores de Português na Finlândia ry, Kulttuurikeskus Ninho ry, and Global Music Department – Uniarts.
Swahili: Wende Luvinga (TZ) & Patience Wanjala (KE).
📌 3 – 4 pm Balcony (above Event room).
Association: Familia ry.
German: Ida Tammi (AT).
📌 3 – 4 pm Orange room.
Association: Familia ry.
Hinki – Kannada: Aarthi Sudhindraa (IN) dancer and storyteller.
📌 4 – 5 pm: Orange room.
Association: Kulttuurikeskus Ninho ry.
Spanish: Javiera Mac-lean (CL) illustrator and author, Verónica Miranda (AR), educator, Alicia Sevilla (MX) designer and storyteller, and Mi Casita Päiväkoti (FI) | Musician: Manuel Rosales (AR) will play guitar.
📌 4 – 5 pm Event Room.
Associations: Kulttuurikeskus Ninhory , Mi Casita Päiväkoti and Global Music Department – Uniarts.
Ukrainian: Nataliia Deineka (UKR), illustrator and author.
📌 4 – 5 pm Balcony (above Event room).
Association: HIAP – Helsinki International Artist Programme & The Association of Ukrainians in Finland.
🎨 Art and literature workshops for children:
Workshop ‘Susurradores’: Selkokulttuuri ry brings this beautiful workshop in English and plain Finnish, by Hanna Alajärvi (FI) and Jeroen Sebrechts (BE-FI). Families will create their own ‘Susurrador’ (‘Whisperer’), from recycled materials. Learn this special way of storytelling, and experience this active way of sharing, listening and telling stories and poems in your heritage language.
All available languages: Finnish, Swedish, English, German, Japanese, Dutch, French.
📌 2 – 5 pm Purple tables area.
Workshop ‘Kokonainen minä’: Noora Ketolainen, from Familia ry, will facilitate a funny workshop for children, around the book the association just launched “Kokonainen minä”.
📌 3 – 5 pm Window carpet.
🎶 Concerts for children:
The party will begin and end with concerts for the whole family.
The band HOME will be the protagonist of the gran opening of Reading Together this year!
‘The three bridges’ will mix music and storytelling in Greek. The band describes their performance as “the adventures of Melodie, Rhythm. When music marries the story, to create an atmosphere of hope, solidarity, diversity and understanding. A story about a realistic future for children of all ages”.
Band members: Chrysa Panagiotopoulou (GR): Vocals | Sara Majidinejad (IR): Qanun | Melisa Yıldırım (TR): Anatolian Kamancha | Sami Karkar (FR/ TN): Percussion | Evangelos Velentzas (GR): Storytelling | Vasileios Katopodis (GR): Guitar.
📌 1 – 2 pm | Children’s Area (Main carpet).
Closing concert | MeNiños
João Luís (PT), Natalia Castrillón (CO) and Tomas Takolander (FI) will close Reading Together with a concert where children and families will actively participate! Enjoy and explore the sounds of the harp, guitar, and percussion with music and rhythms from diverse regions and voices singing in multiple languages (Spanish, English, Finnish, Portuguese).
📌 5 – 6 pm | Children’s Area (Main carpet)
Reading Together is a co-production by Kulttuurikeskus Ninho ry, Selkokulttuuri ry, Familia ry – in cooperation with Oodi Library, Global Music Department – Uniarts, FIN POLAR Kultturikeskus Ry, APPF – Associação de Professores de Português na Finlândia ry, HIAP – Helsinki International Artist Programme, Istituto Italiano di Cultura di Helsinki, Mirsal ry, Mi Casita Päiväkoti, The Association of Ukrainians in Finland and Multilingual Library.
With the support of Helsinki City, Taike, Moniheli and Svenska Kulturfonden.