I was sorry to miss the dressing up and excitement of World Book Day yesterday. Thinking about which character I would have chosen for dressing up, led me to reflect on some of the most succesful books I have enjoyed sharing with children. They are usually books that are fun for children to listen to or read. They make children think about big questions and as a result create excitement about learning.
When teaching in EYFS, one of my favourites was The Giant Jam Sandwich by John Vernon Lord. I know our Ladybirds and Butterflies enjoyed this book last year too. In fact, this became a family favourite when my own children were young. My now 25-year-old son tested me just a few weeks ago to see if together we could still recite the whole story without the text and we could! “One hot summer in Itching Down ….”
My favourites books for older children have to be The Tower to The Sun by Colin Thompson which invites the reader to consider the effect of pollution and Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt which raises the question – if you had the chance to live forever, at the same age as you are now, would you take it?!
I was delighted to hear that Miss Bartlett and Mrs McLeod-Jones dressed up as the ‘Evil Pea’ from Supertato for singing assembly! How my niece, Tilly, loves that story! She even carried her Supertato round with her for weeks after making one at school!
Have fun sharing some stories with your children this weekend – just think you might still be able to recite one in twenty years time if it’s a really good one!
