Welcome to Action Education Switzerland
The Read-A-Thon
A literary challenge to raise awareness of international solidarity
The Read-A-Thon is an event designed to raise children's awareness of international solidarity, while at the same time stimulating a love of reading.
This awareness-raising mission is an integral part of our commitment to inclusive and equitable education, opening up dialogue and awakening the curiosity of young people. Our teams work with schools to raise awareness of international solidarity. We visit schools to make young people aware of the inequalities in access to education around the world, the challenges faced by many children and the solutions being implemented to overcome them.
During the Reading Marathon, children are invited to read, over a set period, books from a selection chosen by their teachers, in whatever way the teachers see fit.
Beyond words, each book thus becomes a window onto the world, a unique opportunity for children to combine the joy of reading with civic awareness, by understanding that everyone, in their own way, has the power to make a difference in international solidarity and to work towards a fairer and more inclusive future.
Additional devices
The above is the backbone of a Read-A-Thon.
There are other possible avenues. The schemes presented below are designed to show you that there is a wide range of possibilities.
Linking students in Switzerland with students in Benin, Togo and Senegal
A series of meetings is being organised between :
- a class in Switzerland and a class in Senegal,
- a class in Switzerland and a class in Togo,
- a class in Switzerland and a class in Benin.
The first meeting allows children to meet, introduce themselves and talk about their daily lives as pupils and their relationship with reading. Pupils from both classes take it in turns to come up to the blackboard and ask their counterparts questions.
The second meeting provides an opportunity to get to know each other better, to go into more depth on the subjects discussed during the first meeting and to ask any questions that could not be asked during the first meeting.
An event to promote the pleasure of reading
The educational work proposed by the school as part of the Read-A-Thon focused on the pleasure of reading. Each pupil was able to choose the book of their choice for a personal project. The pupils' work was then presented. The exhibition was open to parents and pupils from other classes in the school. An Action Education stand, manned by our team, was on hand for the occasion.
The sale of second-hand books in aid of the charity
A book collection is organised within the school. This opportunity to sort through the pupils' libraries enables us to organise a book sale and raise additional funds for Action Education's projects.
A first-hand account by Nadège Rousseau, a teacher at the Institut Florimont
«This collaboration has been a very enriching experience, both for me and for the pupils. It has enabled us to discover another culture and to get to know the pupils at a school in Benin better – their environment, their daily lives, and the way they live and learn. The exchanges sparked a great deal of interest and curiosity among the children. Above all, they made the purpose of our second-hand book sale and the importance of raising money to support a useful, real-world and meaningful project very tangible for the pupils in Switzerland.»
Discover our magazine dedicated to the Marathon Lecture
Testimonials from previous editions of the Reading Marathon
Tools at your disposal
The reading passport to track children's reading efforts
A diploma to reward students for their involvement at the end of the Read-A-Thon
Our news in Switzerland
Launch of the 2024-2025 edition of Action Education Switzerland's Marathon Lecture
On 2 October 2024, Action Education Switzerland launched the Marathon Lecture in a new participating school: the Moser School. This solidarity challenge encourages pupils to read to support access to education around the world.
Press release - International solidarity: Geneva children take up the challenge of a reading marathon to raise awareness of the importance of education in the world
From 19 February to 25 March 2024, the NGO Action Education Suisse is launching the first edition of its Marathon Lecture in partnership with the Institut Florimont, a joint literary challenge for schoolchildren in the 9th grade, to raise awareness of the importance of education.
