Teach Primary Issue 18.7

Meet the author SARA STANLEY IS AN EARLY YEARS CONSULTANT SPECIALISING IN PHILOSOPHICAL STORYPLAY. SHE CURRENTLY WORKS AS A BOOKSELLER IN NORFOLK. What was primary school like for you? I went to an infant and junior school which shared the same site separated only by a white painted line in the grass. My memories of infant school are happy ones, and my mother had to peel my fingers from the fence at the end of each day as I refused to leave. Story time was the highlight of every day, and I would take my library books in to show my teacher telling her they were much more exciting than the school books. I was an imaginative and talkative child and was probably a bit much! I was usually chosen to be the lead in school plays and read out lines from poems in assembly. I think this was the start of my love of writing for an audience. What inspired you to write One-Button and the Sea? It was a story that incubated over many years whilst I worked as a teacher both in refugee camps and in areas of South Africa where life was especially challenging for young people. I wanted children to recognise that adults were, for the most part, rooting for them. The children I’ve been fortunate enough to share stories with have always been the hope in somebody’s life, with the ability to bring about change – just as One-Button is to his community. What’s the most important or interesting thing about children’s books that you’ve learned from your work as a bookseller? The most important and interesting thing about books is that they find their reader. Building ‘story relationships’ with children can facilitate this: it’s a really special feeling when a child engages with you about a passion, and you know exactly which books to recommend. There is nothing more exciting than watching a reader get sucked into the page of a newly discovered book. One-Button and the Sea by Sara Stanley and Viviane Schwarz is out now in hardback (£12.99, Scallywag Press) www.teachwire.net | 67 The History of Information by ChrisHaughton (HB £20.00, Dorling Kindersley) ‘First we shape the tools, then the tools shape us...’ From cave paintings and the earliest languages, to Big Data and AI, this fascinating survey of the ways humans share and store information is a joy to look at and explore. Clearly presented over ten well-considered chapters, this large-format hardback is illustrated in Haughton’s signature style with bold graphics and an exciting palette of saturated colours used sparingly to direct the eye. The History of Information is Haughton’s debut non-fiction book and takes a fascinating look at human history from a new perspective. It’s particularly good for confident UKS2 readers looking for something special to grow on, but Haughton’s stylish presentation and accessible design will inspire others to explore it, too. The Wild Life of Dinosaurs and Other Prehistoric Animals byMikeBarfield, illus. PaulaBossio (£10.99, Buster Books) From the earliest life-forms on our planet to the emergence of humans, The Wild Life of Dinosaurs takes a comic-book approach to this popular subject. Packed with fascinating facts, Mike Barfield’s humorous text dances across the pages, mostly in chatty first-person mode ( Hi, I’m Dunkleosteus, pleased to eat you…) but other pages including the ‘Dead Cool’ panels take a more traditional approach. Paula Bossio has fun with the comic-book format – even the giant millipede is hilariously expressive – and there’s plenty of dynamic interplay between the characters. Effective page design, visual clarity and a pleasing palette further raise the bar. This book is a joy to read, and children will be queuing up to get their hands on it. RESOURCES RECOMMENDED EXPLORE OLIVER TWIST IN UKS2 Part of Plazoom’s powerful Unlocking Inference collection, this resource pack includes a fully annotated extract, with close vocabulary work as well as questions designed to elicit sophisticated, evidenced inferences from all pupils. A complete course of video training explains the layered reading approach that will ensure deep understanding of the text for the whole class – try it today, at bit.ly/PlzOliver KS2 KS2