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Global literacy campaign kicks off from great heights

Thursday 28 October 2010, 5:31PM

By Scholastic New Zealand Limited

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Global literacy campaign kicks off from great heights
Global literacy campaign kicks off from great heights Credit: Scholastic New Zealand Limited

Loved by children worldwide, Clifford the Big Red Dog and Geronimo Stilton
kicked off a global literacy campaign by doing a SkyWalk and jumping off the
Auckland Harbour Bridge.

The Read Every Day. Lead A Better Life. campaign started in Auckland in a bid to
raise awareness about A Child’s Right to Read, an international call to action to
encourage everyone to read every day.

The sight of a big red dog made a golden retriever excited at Auckland’s Ferry
Terminal. Clifford and Geronimo then ascended 192 metres up the Sky Tower
and, firmly harnessed, walked the 1.2 metre-wide walkway above the city.

When it came to the bungy-jump, at the last minute Clifford got cold paws and
decided he didn’t want to do it, so Geronimo Stilton showed he is an adventurous
mouse and jumped in his place. Footage can be viewed on YouTube.

Clifford and Geronimo were accompanied by staff from Scholastic, a leading
children’s book publisher that is celebrating its 90th Anniversary with its global
literacy campaign.

Scholastic is spreading the word about every child’s right to read and what that
means in the 21st century, from access to books and great stories to the ability to
analyse, interpret and understand information in the digital age.