The winners of The Farshore Reading for Pleasure Teacher Awards 2023, highlighting the work schools are doing to encourage a love of reading, have... And our final frontier – space. What bigger and better journey could you take with your little learners?! The Skies Above My Eyes is a brilliant take on a book format. To read it, you need to unfold it all out, so make sure you have plenty of space. Take your eyes on a journey up from skyscrapers, aeroplanes all the way up into space. Full of brilliant facts and stunning illustrations from Yuval Zommer. Destination: Space is an excellent read for KS2 and covers so much on space in readable sections and with great illustrations. Read more about Curiosity’s journey to Mars here. This year’s British Science Week theme is ‘journeys’ which has really got me inspired to share some excellent books to use during the Week. Books may not be your first thought for a science week, but they can really be a great spark for scientific enquiry and can support children acquiring new scientific knowledge and understanding. Reading really is STEMsational and it can help to build children’s science capital! Studying pollination? This book, with clever cut-outs, follows the journey of a bee. Use the power of story and Britta’s amazing illustrations to help children really understand this process. Night-time Around The World: Moon and Molly’s Moon Mission

Let’s go straight into some fantastic books you may wish to use. The Everyday Journeys of Ordinary Things Author Guy Bass introduces SCRAP, about one robot who tried to protect the humans on his planet against an army of robots. Now the humans need his...Heather Wright is a primary school teacher, with 15 years experience across KS1 and KS2. She is currently a year 5 teacher, KS2 team leader and English Lead. The format of the explanations is very accessible and would provide a great model for children to write their own journey explanations. Amazing Animal Journeys, North: The Amazing Story of Arctic Migration and We Travel So Far How do your kids enjoy themselves in the water, and how do they stay safe when they’re playing or swimming? How and why is water important for good health?

When you’ve finished reading, talk about the book. What did you like best? Did anything surprise you? How do the illustrations make you feel? Are they good illustrations for a watery book? Why? Alternatively, Molly’s Moon Mission is a great narrative choice which could start off some science learning on light and shadows. Find some suggested activities here. I hope I’ve inspired you a little to use books within your British Science Week. Do let me know how you get on and, of course, share any other book recommendations that support the theme of ‘journeys’. I’d love to see any of the work your children create following reading any of these books. About the author Author Luke Palmer introduces his new book, Play (Firefly Press) about four boys growing up together, the challenges, the friendships, and what hap... Curious about exploring the journeys in biology? As We Grow is a beautiful narration on the changes a human goes through in their life. A lovely read which takes a look at the stages of life in a thoughtful way. Now which child doesn’t find poo interesting? The Clue is in the Poo explores the poo (amongst other interesting scientific things!) of many animals. You can discover the food they eat and the journey it takes through them. Fun! Finally, Human Body Odyssey is another great choice which explores the wonders of the human body. Totally Wild Chase, When the Whales WalkedDepending on their age and experience, children could include poetic devices such as rhyme, alliteration, assonance and onomatopoeia - but encourage them to use these with care (and sparingly!)

Totally Wild Chase has a fun and interesting format, as you follow Wifred and Olbert on their journey to be the first to discover a new creature. This book would make a great book to share with Year 6, when learning about classification. When the Whales Walked is another great choice for Year 6, going on the journey of Evolution. Find more ideas to go with Totally Wild Chase here. Nature’s Tiny Miracle Bee Simply yet perfectly pitched for young readers, there’s a depth and quality to this book that extends its appeal. Shared as an introduction to watery topics and creative activities it will engage and inspire children right through primary school.

Winter's Child

Involving children as you readThe text accompanying the image of the earth orbiting the sun would make a great chant - cloud, rain river, sea, water cycles endlessly– or you could ask children to respond with water cycles endlessly (making a rotating action with both hands) when they hear the words cloud, rain river, sea. And how about inviting them to dip their fingers in a bowl of water to touch the world-wide wet...? This text fully supports the curriculum subject of water, and also showcases playful, rhythmic poetry. Just like Once upon a Star, it is perfect to read aloud to a group of children.