Children from Israel participated in the national record of Ukraine, set on October 24, 2026, during an international online poetry marathon about the Ukrainian language. Along with them, young readers from Europe, Asia, America, Africa, and Oceania performed. A total of 115 children from five continents participated in the event, and the achievement was registered in the National Register of Records of Ukraine.
The Ministry of Culture of Ukraine reported the record on October 31, 2026. Israel is directly mentioned among the countries from which children joined the international event.
Author — Elena Gunko
But what exactly did the children do, why did the seemingly ordinary poetry reading become a national record, and how did children from Israel, thousands of kilometers away from Ukraine, participate?
The organizer was the international online school of Ukrainian language and culture “CVIT”, founded by Lesya Duda. The marathon was timed to the Day of Ukrainian Writing and Language, which is celebrated in Ukraine on October 27. The event itself took place three days earlier, on Saturday.
How the marathon was held and what exactly was registered as a national record
The essence of the achievement was not in the speed of reading, the duration of performances, or the number of poems one child could memorize. The organizers brought together 115 children living in different countries on five continents to participate in one international online marathon dedicated to the Ukrainian language.
The record received a special nomination — “The largest number of child readers from five continents in a children’s online poetry marathon about the Ukrainian language“.
In other words, the number of children participating in the general poetic event and its international geography were taken into account. This is not a competition for the best performance, not simultaneous choral reading, and not a world record set in a universal category.
Preparation began even before October 24. The organizers invited children studying the Ukrainian language outside of Ukraine to participate. There were no age restrictions in the announced conditions. Parents were offered to contact the school via Facebook or Instagram and provide the child’s name, age, country of residence, and a fragment of a poem about the Ukrainian language that they were going to read.
After registration, the project coordinator was supposed to send the family instructions for connection. The start of the online marathon was scheduled for 3:00 PM Kyiv time.
Judging by the video recording published by the organizers, the marathon was held in the format of a general online conference. Participants from different countries read poems as part of one event. This format allowed children to perform in front of a general audience without traveling to Ukraine. However, the video recording itself does not confirm that all 115 children were simultaneously connected.
The program included works of Ukrainian poetic classics, including “Movo ridna, slovo ridne” by Sydir Vorobkevych and “Napuchuvannya” by Ivan Malkovych. Children also read original poems written by Ukrainian language teachers specifically for students living abroad.
The common theme of all performances was the Ukrainian language — its sound, beauty, significance for the family, and connection with Ukraine. This is important for understanding the event: the children did not just recite any familiar poems, but participated in a specially organized poetic meeting with a single theme.
The result was officially recorded by Lana Vetrova, head of the National Register of Records of Ukraine. The organizers did not provide information about the previous record in the same nomination. Therefore, it is about registering a national achievement in the formulated category, not about confirming the surpassing of any world result.
Israel among the participants: what is known about the children and where to watch the performances
Israel’s participation is confirmed by an official statement from the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine. In the published geography of the marathon, the country is listed in the Asian group along with Cambodia, Hong Kong, Taiwan, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, and Japan.
Among the European participants are named, in particular, the United Kingdom, Germany, Poland, France, Italy, Sweden, and Ukraine itself. On the American continent, the USA, Canada, Brazil, and Peru were represented. From Africa, children from Kenya participated, and from Oceania — from Australia.
Thus, children connected from Israel became part of one international event with participants from countries located in completely different time zones.
You can watch the video of the marathon published by the organizers below.
At the same time, official reports do not disclose how many children participated from Israel. Their names, ages, cities of residence, and the poems they read are not mentioned. It is also not reported whether these were children who recently arrived from Ukraine or participants born in Israel.
The latter distinction is significant. The participation of a child located in Israel does not automatically imply that they have Israeli citizenship. It is also unknown whether any of the participants represented a specific Israeli school, cultural center, or public organization.
The Ministry of Culture reports that, in general, among the 115 participants were children from families who left Ukraine after the start of the full-scale Russian invasion, and those who were born outside of Ukraine. However, the distribution of these two groups by country is not provided by the department.
There is also a discrepancy in the overall statistics of the event. The Ministry of Culture of Ukraine in a publication on October 31 reported 115 children from 30 countries. Meanwhile, the Office of the Commissioner for the Protection of the State Language on October 27 indicated 32 countries.
Both official publications describe the same marathon, name 115 children, and confirm the national record. Why the final number of countries differs is not explained. However, Israel is directly present in the geographical list of the Ministry of Culture, so the very fact of the participation of children from our country is not in doubt.
Why the participation of children from Israel is important for Ukrainian families
Behind the figure of 115 participants are completely different family circumstances. Some of the children still remember their school, street, and friends in Ukraine. Others were born abroad and know the Ukrainian language primarily thanks to their parents, teachers, books, and communication with relatives.
In Israel, preserving the Ukrainian language has its own characteristics. Children who attend Israeli schools study and communicate mainly in Hebrew. At home, Ukrainian, Russian, and other languages may be spoken. For some, Ukrainian remains a familiar language of family conversation, for others, it has to be learned almost from scratch.
Therefore, participation in the poetry marathon may require different preparation from children. One may just need to recall a familiar poem, while another has to work on pronunciation, understand unfamiliar words, and learn to read the text aloud.
It is also important that participation did not involve relocation, travel to Ukraine, or performance on the stage of a large concert hall. The international online conference allowed joining from the country of residence. For children in Israel, this meant the opportunity to become participants in a Ukrainian cultural event while staying at home.
For readers of NANews — Israel News | Nikk.Israel Newsinitiatives through which the Ukrainian language continues to be heard in Israeli families.
In September 2026, the editorial reported on children’s books in Ukrainian received by the cultural and educational center “We Together!” in Haifa. The literature was provided free of charge by the international Jewish educational program PJ Library.
Among the transferred editions were stories about Hanukkah, Purim, Jewish family traditions, friendship, memory, and relocation. Such books allow children to read in Ukrainian and simultaneously get acquainted with Jewish culture and history, closely connected with the life of Israel.
This example and the international poetry marathon have a common practical content. The Ukrainian language does not necessarily have to remain only the language of conversations with older relatives. It can be used to read about Israeli holidays, discuss family history, meet other children, and participate in international events.
At the same time, it is not necessary to present the experience of all participants as the same. How exactly the children from Israel prepared, who helped them choose poems, and how much time they spent practicing, the organizers have not yet told. Without this information, it cannot be asserted that any of them overcame a language barrier or performed in front of an audience for the first time.
The participants of the marathon were greeted by Elena Ivanovska, the Commissioner for the Protection of the State Language of Ukraine. She emphasized that through the Ukrainian word, poetry, and respect for the native language, continents and hearts are united.
The organizers also thanked the parents and teachers who help children abroad preserve the Ukrainian language. For families who moved after February 2022, and for those who have been living abroad for many years, such support can have different meanings, but the very opportunity to learn and use the language remains common.
The national record on October 24 recorded the result of an international children’s event. It involved 115 young readers from five continents. Israel was among the represented countries, although personal information about its participants has not yet been published.
There remains a question that would be especially interesting to get an answer to in Israel: who are these children, in which cities do they live, and how is the Ukrainian language present in their daily lives? The published recording of the marathon allows you to get acquainted with the event itself, but does not replace the stories of the participants and their families.
If such stories appear, they will help to see behind the official figure of the national record specific children, their parents, and teachers. For now, the main thing is confirmed: children from Israel became part of an international event that united Ukrainian poetry and participants from five continents.
If it is important for you to see how world events affect Israel and Ukraine, add NANews to Google and follow our publications.