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From Hermione Granger to The Gruffalo, for the last 25 years, children across the UK have gone to school dressed as their favourite characters for World Book Day!

In the UK, the event takes place annually on the first Thursday of March and will be happening on 3 March this year.

World Book Day is organised by a charity and takes place in more than 100 countries all over the world.

But what actually is it and why do we celebrate? Read on to find out!

World Book Day was created as a worldwide celebration of books and reading. The first World Book Day in the UK and Ireland took place in 1997 to encourage young people to discover the pleasure of reading and offer every child the chance to have a book of their own.

To help young people to do that, £1 book tokens are given out at schools, including some nurseries and secondary schools. Those who are home schooled are also able to get tokens!

World Book Day founder, Baroness Gail Rebuck says "our message is the same today as it was then - that reading is fun, relevant, accessible, exciting, and has the power to transform lives."

This year marks a whopping 25 years since the UK's first World Book Day!

The theme and message this year is You are a Reader, and is focusing on children from disadvantaged backgrounds. There are 14 books that you can get with the £1 book token as the World Book Day charity wants "every child and young person to believe they are readers". These are also available in braille, and audio via the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB)

Some children might not like reading or struggle with it, so it can be an encouraging day for them. Others may not own books, so the tokens may give them the opportunity to have their first book.

There are lots of exciting things you can to do celebrate this year!

Including dressing up as your favourite book character, many schools have other special events planned for it - whether it's classroom activities or book themed lessons.

This year you can take part in virtual events from your home or classroom such as the ´óÏó´«Ã½ Teach live lesson.

What do you like about World Book Day and why? Do you know who you want to dress up as? Let us know in the comments!