The Reading Badge

The Slovenian Reading Badge Society is the NGO heading the Reading Badge movement in terms of professional guidance and organization. The Society implements various programmes that encourage children and young people – as well as adults – to read in their free time.

The mission of the Reading Badge, supported by schools, libraries and similar organizations, is to promote lifelong development of reading culture and reading literacy.

   
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Initially a mentoring practice at the Prevalje* primary school, the movement was founded in 1960/61 by Slovenian language professor Stanko Kotnik and author Leopold Suhodolčan. The movement’s initiatives today bring together about 140,000 readers each year. Reading is supported by numerous mentors – librarians, teachers and other experts, as well as authors and publishers; children are also encouraged to read by their families. Some Reading Badge programmes even transcend Slovenian borders to reach Slovenian communities abroad. Due to its significant role in the national culture the Reading Badge is listed by the national Register of Intangible Cultural Heritage.

* A small city in the north of Slovenia.

    
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Slovenian Reading Badge Society

• Provides guidelines for the selection of reading materials and develops the tools needed for their use.

• Shares expert knowledge for the development of modern strategies for encouraging reading.

• Informs about the development of reading, writing and literary culture.

• Ensures efficient and quick integration of the network of participants and an unimpeded flow of information.

• Organizes programmes of specialized education and exchanges.

• Coordinates visits of Slovenian authors.

• Provides motivational book gifts and works to improve the quality of youth literature.

• Prepares motivational materials and certificates.

• Develops various pilot programmes and projects for different age groups (e.g. a programme of intergenerational reading).

• Collaborates with similar organizations in Slovenia and elsewhere (being one of the initiators of the National Month of Reading Together network; heading the Reading Together promotion programme, etc.).

    
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Slovenian Reading Badge Society is a member of Slovenian Association of Friends of Youth and is internationally active as a member of the Slovenian Section of IBBY and the Federation of European Literacy Associations (FELA).

In addition to numerous national awards and prizes, in 2022 the Society received an award for innovative practice in the field of promoting reading culture, awarded every two years by FELA.

Društvo Bralna značka Slovenije – ZPMS
Slovenian Reading Badge Society
Trg prekomorskih brigad 1

SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenija

info@bralnaznacka.si
petra.potocnik@bralnaznacka.si

https://www.bralnaznacka.si/sl/  

https://www.bralnaznacka.si/en/

Source: Slovenia Loves Reading Publication (The Slovenian Section of IBBY)

Further reading:

ENGLISH

Ivan Mitrevski - A Brief History of Reading Badge (short comic) 

Tilka Jamnik - Intergenerational Reading Project
24th European Conference on Literacy, Ljubljana, Slovenia, 2026

Manca Perko, Petra Potočnik - 65 Years of the Reading Badge: Shaping a Culture of Lifelong Reading
24th European Conference on Literacy, Ljubljana, Slovenia, 2026

Tilka Jamnik - Light on Our Feet – With a Book in Hand
24th European Conference on Literacy, Ljubljana, Slovenia, 2026

Petra Potočnik - The Reading Badge movement – Why not try it globally?
6th Baltic Sea Conference on Literacy, Tallinn, Estonia, 2025

Petra Potočnik - Poster - The Golden Reader Project; 385.000 picture books for first-graders (and their families)
39th International IBBY Congress, Trieste, Italy, 2024

Petra Potočnik - Reading Badge = Leisure Reading
23rd European Conference on Literacy, Chania, Greece, 2024

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Conference ‘We love reading’ - Salaborsa Library, Bologna, 10 April 2024
Slovenia - Guest of Honour at the Bologna Children's Book Fair 2024 (8-11 April, 2024)

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Slovenia: Guest of Honour at Frankfurter Buchmesse 2023
Reading promotion panel - From A Curious Brood To A Buzzing Hive Of Readers - The Magic Touch of Reading Promoters

Guests:
Triin Soone, Representative of Estonian Children’s Literature Centre: https://elk.ee/en/centre/ 

Áine Ní Ghlinn - The sixth Laureate na nÓg (Ireland’s Children’s Literature Laureate)
https://childrenslaureate.ie/
https://www.artscouncil.ie/Initiatives/Laureate-na-nOg/
Snježana Berak, Representative of Croatian national campaign Read to me: https://www.citajmi.info/campaign/

Petra Potočnik: Representative of Slovenian Reading Badge Society: https://www.bralnaznacka.si/sl/english/

Moderator: Veronika Rot Gabrovec, University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Arts

A recording of the round-table discussion: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7GiFupx2pMI (Duration: 2:17:23 – 3:04:20)

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Manca Perko - The Reading Badge Movement
Literacy Today Magazine, International Literacy Association, USA, 2023

Petra Potočnik - The Golden Reader Project 20 Years / 679.500 Books
5th Baltic Sea Conference, Riga, Latvia, 2023

Manca Perko - Slovenian Reading Badge Society: With a Book into the World 
22nd European Conference on Literacy, Dublin, Ireland, 2022

Petra Potočnik - Online Environment of The Reading Badge: New Trends and Tendencies 
22nd European Conference on Literacy, Dublin, Ireland, 2022

Petra Potočnik - The Golden Reader Project (Presentation) / The List of Books
38th International IBBY Congress, Putrajaya, Malaysia, 2022

Petra Potočnik - The Golden Reader Project (Article) / The List of Books
38th International IBBY Congress, Putrajaya, Malaysia, 2022

Tilka Jamnik - Intergenerational Reading Project (Article) 
38th International IBBY Congress, Putrajaya, Malaysia, 2022

Petra Potočnik - Poster – Online ventures of Slovenian Reading Badge Society 
37th IBBY International Congress, Moscow, Russia, 2021

Petra Potočnik - Development of Slovenian National Network for Literacy and Reading Culture 
Latvian Book Fair, Riga, Latvia, 2020

Petra Potočnik - Development of Slovenian National Network for Literacy and Reading Culture, Chapter Two
4th Baltic Sea Conference on Literacy, Tallin, Estonia, 2020

Petra Potočnik - Development of Slovenian National Network for Literacy and Reading Culture
21st Conference on Literacy, Copenhagen, Denmark, 2019 

Miha Mohor - The Reading Badge, The Movement for the Development of Youth Reading Culture in Slovenia 
Reading AdVentures Conference, Jeruzalem, Izrael, 2007

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OTHER LANGUAGES

La Slovenia ama leggere - Associazioni, istituzioni e progetti legati alla promozione della lettura e della letteratura di qualità per bambini e ragazzi in Slovenia

Ivan Mitrevski: La storia del Reading Badge (il fumetto) 

Conferenza ‘Amiamo leggere’ - Biblioteca Salaborsa, Bologna, 10 aprile 2024 
Slovenia - Paese ospite d'onore al Fiera del Libro per Ragazzi 2024 di Bologna (8-11 April, 2024)
                                                                                                     
   
Slowenien liest gern - Verbände, Institutionen und Projekte in Slowenien, die sich für die Förderung der Lesekultur und hochwertiger Kinderliteratur einsetzen

Ivan Mitrevski: Kurze geschichte des Leseabzeichens (der comic)

Petra Potočnik - Bralna značka - uspješan projekt promicanja kulture čitanja
Tilka Jamnik - Projekt međugeneracijskog (MG) čitanja
Seminar Čitanjem do uspjeha - Pakrac, Hrvatska (20. in 21. februar 2024)

Petra Potočnik - Pismenost. Vrata u bolji svijet.
Međunarodni stručni skup Čitati i rasti: poticanje čitanja djece i mladih Zagreb, 16. 5. 2025.

Photos:

Photo 1: Firstgraders with Author Andrej Rozman Roza: Livada Primary School (Photo: Reading Badge Archives)
Photo 2: Author and President of The Reading Badge Marko Kravos with Young Readers, Slovene Minority in Italy
(Photo: Reading Badge Archives)
Photo 3: First-graders: Golder Reader Project (Photo: Reading Badge Archives)
Photo 4: Golden Readers: Golden Reader Project (Photo Jaka Fefer)
Photo 5: Mentors and Gift Books (Photo: Jure Drakskobler)
Photo 6: Family Reading in Slovene communities abroad: Schwitzerland (Photo: Reading Badge Archives)