News
BOOKS OF THE WEEK
During our first assembly of the summer term, we announced this half term’s new group of Year 2 Junior Librarians.
Our Junior Librarians for this half of the term are Ariella and Poppy from the Eagle class, Nethuki, Avery and Amalia from the Owl class and finally, Dougie, Taha and Sadie-Rae from the Hawk class. They have the responsibility for the library environment and choose our Book of the Week. Watch this space for their forthcoming suggestions!
Our Grimsdell Library is child centred and so our Book of the Week is always chosen by one of our Junior Librarians. This week, Taha and Dougie have delved into the realm of non-fiction, bringing you two books which reflect their shared passion of football!
Firstly, Taha recommends Tell Me About Football, written by Clive Gifford.
Taha tells us: “I LOVE football! This book contains lots of information about all the football skills you need and gives famous players as examples, such as Ronaldo. In my opinion, Ronaldo is the best player who ever lived!”
Mrs Harvey fully supports Taha’s choice. There is no greater feeling than reading a book which feeds your interest but also expands your knowledge.
Dougie’s non-fiction book based on the subject of football is entitled Football: A step-by-step guide to mastering the skills by Alan Ackrell
Dougie explains the reason for his choice: “Football is definitely my favourite sport. This book doesn’t just tell you about different players, it gives lots of advice about different football skills. This book really helped me to improve my game.”
Mrs Harvey is delighted that Dougie seeks out information from the library to help him hone his footballing skills!
Our Junior Librarians reflect the important role the library plays in developing children’s interests and skill set. Non-fiction books are a popular choice for many of our Grimsdell borrowers. I have written previously about the importance of non-fiction in the development a child’s literacy skills. Non-fiction underpins all other learning: comprehending non-fiction is a life skill. The reading and sharing of non-fiction literature develops reading comprehension, builds background knowledge, and develops analytical skills.
Even if you can’t remember back to when you were 3 or 4, you may have experienced (perhaps with tinge of exasperation) a small child asking you, “But why? Why is it like that? Why does it do that?” We start out life immensely hungry for understanding. We want to work out how things work; we’re full of questions and insatiably curious about the world. When we discover an answer to our questioning, the world seems to make a little more sense and we feel braver and bolder than before. To be curious is not only natural, but it also helps us lead rich and wonderful lives. This is why I’m a passionate advocate for doing whatever possible to enable children and young people to keep asking “Why?”
Non-fiction books are my tools of choice for this; once opened, not only do they feed enthusiasm, foster wonder and put wind beneath wings, they enable readers by delivering knowledge and feeding passion. Like me, you probably want your child to fall in love with books – perhaps because you know that all the research points to frequent readers being more successful in life, or perhaps simply because you know how enjoyable reading is and want others to experience that warmth, delight and pleasure.
How do you encourage your child to read non-fiction if they are a reluctant non-fiction reader? I often encourage children to pair their fiction book with a non-fiction text, as this can make their enjoyment and understanding of the fiction text much richer. Competent readers make meaning from a text not only by knowing what the words mean, but by bringing what they know of the world to the text. It’s worth noting that children are more likely to engage with a non-fiction text related to a story that they are emotionally invested in. Alternatively, go with your child’s interests. Whether it is dogs or princesses, find non-fiction books to match your child’s passions. Include ‘how to’ books such as Junk Modelling that teach them how create new and exciting items or try a science experiment book for all the budding scientists out there! We have a wide range of non-fiction books – I am sure we have something in our library to tempt everyone!
Happy Reading!
Mrs Harvey
