Icelandic Language Day is today. Congratulations!

Happy birthday!

16 November is the Day of the Icelandic Language and is also the birthday of the poet Jónas Hallgrímsson. For many years, the day has been a very festive and eventful occasion, especially in the kindergartens and primary schools of Hafnarfjörður. On this day, the qualifying rounds for the Little and Big Reading Competition begin, and many other fun projects are also officially launched. Due to the special circumstances this year, schools cannot celebrate the day as they have in the past, i.e., with celebrations where multiple classes and year groups are brought together in the hall. Instead, teachers and pupils will have pleasant moments in their own classrooms, and pupils will have the opportunity to hear from Bergrún Íris Sævarsdóttir, author and illustrator and the 2020 Artist in Residence for Hafnarfjörður, on the occasion of the day via video conference.

Special emphasis on reading aloud and presentation

The Great Reading Competition is launching for the 25th time in Hafnarfjörður, the project's cradle. Over the years, the project became a nationwide initiative and it has now reached the point where almost all schools in the country take part annually. The 2020-2021 school year is the last time the National Reading Competition will be held jointly for the whole country, and after that, the competition will be run by individual municipalities. Hafnarfjörður will continue its journey with the competition and considers its responsibility here to be great as the competition's originator in Iceland.

The Great Reading Competition is for pupils in Year 7 of primary schools. The competition involves all pupils practising their reading and presentation skills in the run-up to the final event, which will be held in March 2021 in Hafnarfjörður. Two representatives from each school will then compete, reading both poetry and prose selected by a special committee. All students in the year group will receive a certificate of recognition at the end of the practice period. On the Day of the Icelandic Language, a short story competition also begins for pupils in Years 8 to 10 of Hafnarfjörður's comprehensive schools, and the results will be announced at the aforementioned final festival. This time, students have the choice of writing about (1) an unforgettable day, (2) a dream or reality, or (3) a memory.. Alongside this, a competition for the design of the invitation for the Grand Reading Competition final is held. The competition is an annual event for Year 6 pupils, and participation has always been very good, with many works of art being submitted for the invitations.

To become better at reading today than yesterday

The Junior Reading Competition is newer than the Senior one and is intended for Year 4 pupils in primary schools. It is now being formally held for the eleventh time. The competition is based on the same concept as the Senior one but is adapted for younger pupils. It focuses on presentation and reading, but with a different emphasis. Everyone takes part, and the concept of 'competition' in this project is solely about becoming a better reader today than you were yesterday. In April 2021, celebrations are then held within the schools, and parents receive a special invitation, in addition to which all pupils receive a certificate of recognition. This development project also began in Hafnarfjörður, but today around 3,000 pupils nationwide take part.

Further information is available from each school and from the office of the Education and Public Health Department of Hafnarfjörður, which is responsible for this. Ingibjörg Einarsdóttir, former office manager, project manager of the projects presented above.