On the opening day of Sony Pictures’ Peter Rabbit, the SAG-AFTRA Foundation's children’s literacy program Storyline Online is launching its newest video featuring Peter Rabbit star Rose Byrne reading the original classic The Tale of Peter Rabbit (storylineonline.net/peter-rabbit), written and illustrated by Beatrix Potter in 1901 and published in 1902.
The quintessential cautionary tale, The Tale of Peter Rabbit warns children about the grave consequences of misbehaving. When Mrs. Rabbit beseeches her four furry children not to go into Mr. McGregor’s garden, the impish Peter naturally takes this as an open invitation to create mischief. He quickly gets in over his head, when he is spotted by farmer McGregor himself.
Byrne provides a compelling and animated seven-minute read aloud of Potter’s British classic alongside the original illustrations creatively lifted from the page. Byrne concludes by sharing, “It’s one of my favorite books growing up as a child. Did you know this book is over 100 years old? And I chose it because my mother used to read it to me.”
Rose Byrne is the latest actor to join an expanding cast of Storyline Online readers. Other readers include Viola Davis, Chris Pine, Kevin Costner, Lily Tomlin, Christian Slater, Betty White, Wanda Sykes, Justin Theroux and James Earl Jones. Storyline Online® features beloved performers reading cherished children’s books aloud alongside creatively produced, original illustrations. The site streams more than 43 videos available at no cost to children, parents, and educators worldwide, and receives over 6 million views every month.
“We are so grateful to have Rose Byrne volunteer her time and talent to read for Storyline Online and bring this children’s classic to life for our digital library,” said Cyd Wilson, Executive Director of the SAG-AFTRA Foundation. “We hope Peter Rabbit audiences will head over to Storyline Online to find out how the original book compares to the movie.”
As with all Storyline Online videos, The Tale of Peter Rabbit comes with a supplemental activity guide aligned with Common Core Standards that strengthens verbal, written and comprehension skills. Aimed at students K-1st grades, these activities encourage students to engage in critical thinking and ponder the themes from the book including animal and human interactions, cause and effect, and gender and social conventions.
In addition, the award-winning Storyline Online website also has a new app for iPhone and Android. The app features the full digital library of Storyline Online videos, complimentary educational activity guides and more.
To view The Tale of Peter Rabbit and all of Storyline Online videos, visit storylineonline.net.
