Teach Primary Issue 19.5

teachwire.net/primary 47 Keep the reading spark alive through the primary-secondary transition with the right books at the right time, says TomMitchell ... G iven that his dad is an English teacher and children’s author, you might imagine my 13-year-old son to be the world’s biggest reader, but that’s not quite how things have turned out. It wasn’t always this way, though; back in primary school, he loved reading. Every so often, my phone throws up a photo memory of him snuggled up with a book. I’d like to say I wonder where that boy went, but I know exactly: he was chased away by SATs, 11+ exams, and secondary school homework. And he’s not alone; HarperCollins recently released research showing that almost one in three (29 per cent) of children aged five to 13 now think reading is “more a subject to learn than a fun thing to do”. So here’s the question: how do we stop reading from becoming a chore? Spark interest According to the National Literacy Trust’s 2019 Annual Literacy Survey, reading for pleasure levels drop significantly during the transition from primary to secondary school, falling from 72.7 per cent in Year 5 to just 48.8 per cent in Year 8. For any parent or teacher, this won’t come as news. The move to secondary school is like reaching a new video game level: you’ve completed one world, only to find the next is tougher, darker, and full of new challenges. And that’s just the parents. OECD data from the 2022 PISA suggests that UK secondary school students spend an average of two hours a day on homework. Given this, it’s no wonder reading for pleasure falls away – especially if the new school shifts the emphasis from reading for fun to reading for assessment. Reading for pleasure is like tending a campfire: it doesn’t need grand gestures, just regular attention, the occasional spark, and something to keep it burning. Left alone for too long, it fades to embers. Neglected completely, it dies out. How, then, can we keep the fire burning? Clearly, kids need books that match their interests and their reading level; books that support not just a love of reading, but the habit of it. The danger, however, is the dreaded ‘b’ word: boredom. I once received a negative Amazon review for one of my children’s books, for kids aged nine plus, in which the parent bemoaned the struggle their ‘precocious’ six-year-old had in reading it. If you give children books that are too difficult, they’ll lose momentum. Similarly, if you stick to books that are far below their abilities, they will quickly outgrow them and stall again. Tend the flames This is where transition books come in. They aren’t just about keeping the wheels turning – they help young readers build stamina and confidence for the longer rides ahead. They bridge the gap, offering more complex characters and ideas without abandoning the fun. The Big Cat Read On series is pitched at exactly this spot: accessible but never condescending, post-early chapter books, but pre-full-length YA. And in no way boring. I was lucky enough to be asked to write two books in the first round of Read On. And I wrote what I’d want my son to have read at that age. Both Gold Rush and On the Bench are stories that are funny, real, and meaningful. Because here’s the thing: books in these key years don’t need to be overly literary. They just need to keep kids reading. I realise my 13-year-old is unlikely to ever plead with me to bring a book with him on the supermarket drive with the same passion that he begs to be allowed his phone. But as I encourage him to read little and often, I hope the routine will help him rediscover that sense of ease and balance – where reading becomes just another way to enjoy the ride, rather than a task to prepare him for his GCSEs. It’s an ongoing mission, and one I think would have been easier had I understood just how bumpy the transition between Year 6 and Year 7 could be. We want our children to read not because they have to, but because they want to. As parents, teachers, and writers, it’s our job to make sure they leave primary school not just with skills, but with stories. It’s not about leaping straight to the classics, but about building the confidence to get there – and keeping the fire gently fed along the way. TP Onwards and UPWARDS www.teachwire.net | 47 “Reading for pleasure is a bit like a fire; it doesn't need grand gestures, just regular tending” TomMitchell is mostly a dad, partly a teacher and, at times, a Collins Big Cat writer. collins.co.uk/BigCat T EACH PR I MARY I N PARTNERSH I P W I TH