Teach Primary Issue 19.5

On the road The autumn programme for The Children’s Bookshow is now live. Taking inspiring author stories, fascinating poetry performances and a whole load of new books on tour around the country, this is a great opportunity to discover your new favourite read (and maybe treat your pupils!). The tour begins in Blackpool on 19th September, and speakers include Children’s Laureate Frank Cottrell-Boyce, Katherine Rundell, Matt Goodfellow, and more. Each tour location will also have four free in-school workshops, for which you can express interest when booking tickets. Every child who attends an event is given a book by the artist performing to take home and keep, such as Matt Goodfellows’ The Final Year ; Tyger by SF Said; and Frank Cottrell-Boyce’s The Blockbusters . Sign up at thechildrensbookshow.com www.teachwire.net | 9 I N EVERY I SSUE Look ahead | Book ahead Q & A Does not compute The Raspberry Pi Foundation is calling for urgent action to prepare young people for the age of AI. The paper claims that whilst AI systems are making coding more efficient, we still need expert human programmers to control the AI systems and critically review the code they generate, and that learning to code is still the most effective way to develop expertise in programming. Industry reports that 30 per cent of code is now being written by AI systems, machine learning, robotics, and automation. The report, however, argues that though we don’t know how far-ranging these changes will be, we are living through one of the most significant waves of technological innovation in history. Philip Colligan, CEO at Raspberry Pi Foundation, says: “Whilst AI systems are now able to generate code, we still need skilled human programmers to control these systems and make sure that what they produce is safe, ethical, and relevant to the problems we are trying to solve.” Read the full report at raspberrypi.org Selina Brown Author, marketing consultant and event producer 1.What was primary school like for you? Primary school was full of energy, curiosity and creativity for me. I was always that child with my hand up, excited to read aloud or dive into a new story. But looking back, I rarely saw books in the classroom that reflected my culture or identity. Whilst I loved school, I often had to go home to find stories that felt like me. 2. Give us some book recs from BlackBritishauthors I AmNefertiti by Annemarie Anang is a beautiful, empowering story about identity and finding your voice. Aziza’s Secret Fairy Door by Lola Morayo is full of magic and imagination – a perfect chapter book series for younger readers. The Offline Diaries by Yomi Adegoke and Elizabeth Uviebinené is brilliant for UKS2 – it’s funny, real, and gives an honest look at friendship. 3.What is one thing you’d like to tell teachers about diversity? Diversity in reading isn’t a themed day or a tick-box exercise – it’s something that should be woven into the everyday classroom experience. Children deserve to see themselves reflected in stories all year round, and they also benefit from seeing worlds and perspectives beyond their own. When representation is consistent, it helps build confidence, empathy, and curiosity, and gives all children the message: you matter, and there is space for you here . Selena Brown’s book, My Rice is Best (£7.99, Puffin), is out now. *Tes of primary school teachers say that cyberbullying is the most common online risk for their pupils * 74% KID LIT FEST The UK’s largest kid lit festival is back. On 21-22 June, Barnes Children’s Literature Festival returns to London with more than 100 inspiring events, workshops and more. See tinyurl.com/tp-Bkidlit THANK A TEACHER Mark 18 June in your calendars; it’s National Thank a Teacher Day! Despite what the name suggests, this one is for all school staff, and you can get free lesson plans, cards and more at tinyurl.com/tp-Thanks