The National Library’s management department MAKTABA, of the Department of Culture and Tourism in Abu Dhabi, launched the ninth edition of the Creative Reader Competition for the 2021-22 season open to all students in the UAE, starting from November 20, 2021, until the end of March 2022.
The competition is part of the library’s effort to inculcate a culture of reading and knowledge in children and to be active contributors to Abu Dhabi’s cultural development, and helping them to read Arabic and English, while at the same time making them visit and support the emirate’s public libraries. The competition also aims at highlighting the importance of reading as a vessel for culture and thought, as well as taking care of children’s literature and enriching the literary arena with new creations in this field.
Sheikha Al Muhairi, Director of the Libraries Department at the Department of Culture and Tourism in Abu Dhabi, said that the Creative Reader Competition in its past sessions contributed to enriching the literary arena and spreading cultural values among different members of society, especially children, through its focus on nurturing and supporting their creativity and enhancing their ability to acquire knowledge and experiences in the Arabic language and directing them towards community development.
She encouraged participants in the competition to obtain a library membership and register on the competition’s website and read as many books as possible over a period of two months, and then filling out the competition form and submitting it on time. Participants are also required to pass the personal interview to qualify for the second stage of the competition. They can borrow books from branches of all Dar al-Kutub (National Library) libraries in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi including the digital library, and can participate in virtual reading clubs.
The Creative Reader Competition has succeeded in attracting more than 4,000 participants in its past sessions from various public and private schools in Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, and the Al Dhafra region.
The jury, which includes well known writers, educators, and librarians, will evaluate the entries based on the percentage of completion of the competition booklet, the number of books loaned from public libraries compared to other books, the participant’s comprehension of the read book, ability to speak a sound language, use of language skills, lexical semantics, as well as creative thinking skills such as the ability to critically analyse texts and books that have been read.
