By Sarah Jarman, Deputy Headteacher and Literacy Co-ordinator
AT Micklehurst All Saints CE Primary School, we strive to develop a love of books in all our children and instill a real desire to be lifelong readers.
It has been our mission this year to develop a culture of reading among our entire school so we’ve organised several literary-themed events.
Our most recent event involved a visit from World History Author Christopher Lloyd, who enthralled the children with an in-person exhibition show based on his most recent book, It’s Up to Us: A Children’s Terra Carta for Nature, People and Planet.
Children from Years 2, 3, 5 and 6 joined Christopher on a beautifully illustrated journey through the story of global climate change supported by the book’s jaw-dropping illustrations. The book even has a royal seal of approval and is based on ideas inspired by the Prince of Wales.
The children were engrossed as Christopher detailed how humans have upset nature and how it is up to us to act now and help restore the harmony of nature, people and planet.
A big hit was Christopher’s storytelling coat; his jacket full of pockets held an array of items linked to the book’s theme and kept the children guessing throughout.
It’s important at Micklehurst that our children are exposed to a wide range of genres and authors and this event in particular put a spotlight on everything that non-fiction has in store.
For many children, and often those that are reluctant readers, non-fiction offers a different avenue into the awe and wonder that books contain and the number of spellbound faces in Christopher’s audience is testament to its appeal.
Following the show, the children were invited to purchase a signed book from our visiting author.
They relished the opportunity to talk to Christopher and take away a memento of the occasion.
Since the event, we’ve loved hearing about the wondrous facts our children have acquired and the seemingly impossible but ever so real worlds they’ve visited through their new book.
It’s safe to say that our staff were equally as enthralled – it seems the thrill of having a book signed by its author is one that excites readers of any age!
Earlier in the term, we marked World Book Day with several exciting opportunities to celebrate reading. Our children donned creative costumes inspired by book characters and wowed us at our very own Micklehurst storybook parade as well as taking part in our ‘We’re Going on a Book Hunt’ adventure. They followed a range of clues around the school grounds to find new books for their classroom reading areas.
Our school library continues to grow and we’ve worked incredibly hard to raise enough money to invest in a selection of new texts to appeal to readers of all ages. We’ve extended our selection of phonically decodable texts for younger readers to take home and enjoy as well as adding to our range of Guided Reading books throughout school.
In the library itself, our display shelves are currently home to a new selection of texts celebrating diversity; the books have been written by a diverse range of authors and tell the stories of a diverse range of protagonists.
Our new display was launched following a whole school event: Diversity Day. Each class found inspiration from one of our new books and studied a different individual, such as Elton John or Harriet Tubman, before coming together to share our findings and celebrate diversity.
At Micklehurst, we’re always looking for opportunities to embrace technology in order to enhance our children’s learning journey. In Key Stage Two, pupils have been assigned their own individual iPad. We’ve recently launched the Pickatale App, which gives children access to hundreds of books on their iPads and has proven highly engaging, particularly among some of our older children.
From Nursery to Year 6, our curriculum is carefully designed to teach children the skills they’ll need to read words accurately and to inspire a love of reading. Our busy calendar of events has already inspired our children to grab a bookmark and find their inner bookworm and we’re looking forward to planning even more opportunities to help them experience the true magic of reading.