Hi. I’m Tom, an Assistant Headteacher from Solihull and an avid reader. I am very passionate about reading and the importance of fostering a great love of reading from a young age – last year, I co-led an Open University/UKLA Reading for Pleasure teacher group for Solihull and Worcestershire schools. I am a big fan of detective thrillers, middle grade novels, picture books and graphic novels. I buy a lot of books but am also extremely lucky to work with some book publishers to review some of their upcoming releases.
I’m married with two young children so the days are pretty busy but that’s nothing better than relaxing with a good book and getting lost in another world. That might be why I love travelling too.
Recent Book Reviews
- The Big Ask – Simon James GreenIt is Harvey Ledger at the door. I know Jas said it would be, but why would I believe her? It’s completely outlandish. Harvey has never been to my house before. He doesn’t know where I live. And yet… here he is. Standing in my doorway. Harvey is popular, cool and has been in aContinue reading “The Big Ask – Simon James Green”
- Press Start! Super Rabbit Boy’s Mega Quest! – Thomas FlinthamSunny’s playing his favourite video game again but in order to stop King Viking this time, Super Rabbit Boy needs the mega wand. Unfortunately, he doesn’t have any coins to buy it. Cue many side quests in order for Super Rabbit Boy to get the upper hand against his nemesis… The Press Start! series hasContinue reading “Press Start! Super Rabbit Boy’s Mega Quest! – Thomas Flintham”
- The Narzat Blog TourNo one knows how the Narzat came to the Jumble Jungle Wood, but he wears a necklace with a meaningful inscription. The wood is full of animals you’d love to meet, but some like the roaring Ravenoserous are absolutely lethal. One day, two villains arrive, armed with guns and a fierce desire for furs andContinue reading “The Narzat Blog Tour”
- Your Time Is Up – Sarah NaughtonBut she can’t think, because now Nero is making sharp hissing sounds, loud enough to ruin her concentration, but too quiet for the teacher to hear. Without looking at him, she puts up her hand, and Mr Peters, who is halfway up the aisle beside this one, redirects his steps. Zaina never meant to getContinue reading “Your Time Is Up – Sarah Naughton”
- The Boy To Beat The Gods – Ashley ThorpeThere was silence as all present imagined the wrath of the thunder god. Kayode’s heart sank for the girl, even though he didn’t know her. But if it was his village, his great baobab that hadn’t borne fruit, he didn’t know what he would have done. All humans were at the mercy of the Orishas,Continue reading “The Boy To Beat The Gods – Ashley Thorpe”
Whole Class Reading activities
Having moved away from guided reading to whole class reading, I have created whole class reading activities for Year 4 (but easily adaptable for other year groups). Each text has 4 days worth of activities: Day 1 is vocabulary (ensuring key language is understood first), Day 2 is reading the extract and discussion time, Day 3 is comprehension questions using VIPERS and then Day 4 is a task around an element of VIPERS e.g. an inference or prediction task.
By focusing on one text per week during lockdown, we’ve had great engagement from the children and it’s widened their knowledge of current texts. All the resources are available in my Dropbox (available here). Here’s what you’ll find:
– The Shark Caller (Zillah Bethell) – Vi Spy (Maz Evans) – Amari and the Night Brothers (B.B. Alston) – The Boy Who Met A Whale (Nizrana Farook) – The Night Bus Hero (Onjali Q Rauf) – The Castle of Tangled Magic (Sophie Anderson) – The Valley of Lost Secrets (Lesley Parr) – Murder Most Unladylike (Robin Stevens) – Malamander (Thomas Taylor) – The Highland Falcon Thief (Sam Sedgman & M G Leonard) – Return to Roar (Jenny McLachlan) – Musical lyrics (Hamilton, Matilda & Dear Evan Hansen).
I am currently creating unseen texts for Year 6. So far there’s recent releases from Crater Lake (Jennifer Killick) to The Christmas Carrolls (Mel Taylor-Bessent) to When the War Came Home (Lesley Parr): https://www.dropbox.com/sh/gu42vpgbzkrt5qb/AACg0djr92GYgrk68orlaTsRa?dl=0