by AJ Alarcon and Solei Vasquez

The Educational Media Center (EMC) of the Ateneo Senior High School (ASHS) led the celebration of Book Week from January 13 to January 17, 2025, in collaboration with faculty members from the departments of Arts, Computer, English, Filipino, and Research at the Ateneo Senior High School campus.

With its theme, “Turning Pages, Unlocking the Imagination: The Adventure of Reading,” the event encouraged the ASHS community to rekindle their enthusiasm for reading and inspire potential writers.

“We wanted to make sure sana na to attract students to read, they [would] want to see a different world from what they used to hear at least in school,” EMC Coordinator Mary Allyson Claude C. Laxamana said.

“They sometimes forget na books are still there, na we can still get something from books, na hindi lang siya pang-academics but also for fun or for happiness,” she added.

The event commenced with the Literary Lookalike Costume Contest, where students and faculty dressed up as their favorite book characters, showcasing their love for different literature.

Laxamana added further that they intentionally made the contest by class this year after seeing better participation from the students using this strategy during the Buwan ng Wika celebration.

Throughout the week, the “Blind Book Date,” activity at the library encouraged participants to pick mystery books, bringing back curiosity and rediscovery of the joy of reading.

Moreover, daily Quiz Bee challenges were conducted through Google Forms to keep the ASHS community engaged, testing their knowledge of books with 500 pesos worth of prizes awarded to the top scorers.

Furthermore, renowned authors Dr. Chuckberry Pascual and Ms. Techie Cano Lopez headlined the “Literary Voices: An Author’s Perspective,” talks on January 14 and 17, inspiring students and faculty with their insights into storytelling and the work that comes with writing.

Students, faculty, and staff actively joined the #ASHSShareYourShelf social media campaign, posting photos of their bookshelves and reading books.

Other highlights of the week include a book fair by Fully Booked, a BookTok series, a book donation drive, and a poster and slogan-making contest to display creativity and literary appreciation.

The activities also emphasized the importance of promoting Filipino literature and supporting public schools and libraries through the donation drive.

“As a book lover ever since elementary, I think the activities made by the library and the school, really resonated with me because it helped me regain my love for reading and discover new things, and discover my lost passion [for reading],” said Giellian Ghelsey Rhaey Froyalde, a grade 11 student from Wright.