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Return to Hundred Acre Wood A major new artwork inspired by the adventures of Winnie-the-Pooh has been unveiled in Ashdown Forest – the real Hundred Acre Wood. The ‘Tree of Trees’ was created using recycled wood from species found in Ashdown Forest. Its branches are covered in fabric leaves decorated by over 1,300 children from 25 UK schools. The installation was officially opened by author Jane Riordan, who has written Winnie-the-Pooh: Tales from the Forest , a new sequel to A.A. Milne’s stories, illustrated by Mark Burgess. Children from St Mary’s C of E Primary School, East Grinstead, joined Jane at the special opening ceremony. Find out more at tinyurl.com/tp-Ootiboo www.teachwire.net | 9 I N EVERY I SSUE Look ahead | Book ahead Q & A Keep your pupils buzzing about reading World Book Day and the fun that goes with it is over for another year, but keeping your pupils buzzing about books and the magic of reading is essential if they are to build a reading habit. To ensure children are raring to read, Scholastic have a few ideas to spark that book joy. A Book Fair ( tinyurl.com/3zy7xxyt ) is a great all-school event to run at any time of year, and running a digital Book Club ( tinyurl.com/2ctkt4pt ) is a no-hassle way to help children discover and chat about new books. Download activity sheets associated with your pupils’ favourite books to make the fun last longer. Prompt your pupils to read books that are series-led and related to their favourite characters, such as Dog Man or Peppa Pig. At home, you can encourage parents to create a reading nook with their children so there is a special place they can go to get lost in a book. Or suggest family activities that involve books, such as a trip to the library followed by a hot chocolate. Read more about how you can help your pupils continue with their reading journey in this blog post by literacy consultant Rachel Clarke: tinyurl.com/266jmzvw *kindredsquared.org.uk/projects/school-readiness-survey of primary teachers think that school readiness is getting worse 50% LOCAL HISTORY MONTH Discover some intriguing things about your area this May with our KS1 and KS2 lesson plans. tinyurl.com/tp-LocalHistory THE SCHOOLS & ACADEMIES SHOW Over 180 education suppliers will be in attendance on 1 May at this event for school leaders and MAT staff. schoolsandacademiesshow.co.uk © Jo Charlesworth Chris Packham Naturalist, conservationist and presenter Howwas primary school for you? I remember my first day vividly. I made a plasticine model of a Tyrannosaurus, because I was massively into dinosaurs at the time.We had a teacher called Miss Beer, a very proper elderly lady with sort of…highlymanicured hair… put it that way. The school was very dark and Victorian, but I remember it fondly. There were a lot of creative things going on; we’d spend the whole of December making decorations. What did you enjoymost about writing your newbook? For me, it’s about finding effective ways to communicate. There’s a real urgency, and therefore you need to be imaginative and creative to catch people’s eyes and ears. There’s ferocious competition for attention, particularly that of younger people. Choosing animals that are surprising is one of the ways to achieve that. And in Superhero Animals we’ve tried to be a little bit confrontational in the topics that we’ve chosen. What’s one thing you thinkwe could all do to help save theworld? If it’s everyone, then food is the key thing.We’re fortunate in the UK that most of us – not all of us, sadly – get to choose what we eat. So I think exploring the environmental cost of what you eat is one way of making real change. Even if it’s just a child talking to their parents about where their food is from. Chris began his TV career presenting children’s series The Really Wild Show, and has since presented nature programmes such as Springwatch. His new book, Superhero Animals , is out now. ©Ben Wetherall