One Book, Two Books, Red Book, Blue Books By Dr. Seuss (Watson)
One book,
Two books,
Red books,
Blue books.
Black books,
White books,
Old books,
New books.
This one’s about Laura’s star.
This one’s got a Light Jar.
Say! What a lot of books there are.
Yes. Some are red. And some are blue.
Some are old. And some are new.
Some are sad.
And some are glad.
And some are very, very bad.
Why are they
Sad and glad and bad?
I do not know.
Go ask your dad.
Some are short.
And some are fat.
That one there’s
About a cat.
From here to there,
from there to here,
Reading choices
We try to steer.
There are some
We like to read.
We read for fun
In the hot, hot sun.
Oh my! Oh me!
Oh me! Oh my!
What a lot
Of books we buy.
Some have two parts
And some have four.
Some have three parts
And some have more.
Which authors wrote them? I can’t say.
But we try to read them everyday.
We’ve seen them come.
We’ve seen them go.
Some read fast.
And some read slow.
Some have pictures,
And some do not.
Not one of them
Is like another.
Don’t ask us why.
Go ask your mother.
Say!
Look at its pages!
A hundred, three…
How many pages
Do I see?
One, two hundred,
Three, four, or five?
Six, eight, ten?
All books thrive!
Thrive! This is something new. I hope all books can thrive, too!
By Dr Suess (Not Really)
Two books,
Red books,
Blue books.
Black books,
White books,
Old books,
New books.
This one’s about Laura’s star.
This one’s got a Light Jar.
Say! What a lot of books there are.
Yes. Some are red. And some are blue.
Some are old. And some are new.
Some are sad.
And some are glad.
And some are very, very bad.
Why are they
Sad and glad and bad?
I do not know.
Go ask your dad.
Some are short.
And some are fat.
That one there’s
About a cat.
From here to there,
from there to here,
Reading choices
We try to steer.
There are some
We like to read.
We read for fun
In the hot, hot sun.
Oh my! Oh me!
Oh me! Oh my!
What a lot
Of books we buy.
Some have two parts
And some have four.
Some have three parts
And some have more.
Which authors wrote them? I can’t say.
But we try to read them everyday.
We’ve seen them come.
We’ve seen them go.
Some read fast.
And some read slow.
Some have pictures,
And some do not.
Not one of them
Is like another.
Don’t ask us why.
Go ask your mother.
Say!
Look at its pages!
A hundred, three…
How many pages
Do I see?
One, two hundred,
Three, four, or five?
Six, eight, ten?
All books thrive!
Thrive! This is something new. I hope all books can thrive, too!
By Dr Suess (Not Really)
Who chooses the books for a class bookshelf?
Should they be the books we as teachers deem as high quality, or should it be the books on the shelves of the bookshops?
This was an Instagram poll I trundled past and answered. Nothing out of the ordinary there, but I then received a message from the poller saying that I was the only person, out of about 30, who has voted that a book corner should be full of books that children can find in the shops. He was curious as to why I had made that decision, so I made my reply.
In terms of the books we recommend or encourage children to read, it should be a balance.
Great stories are and always will be great stories, however, the books we grown ups remember as great stories from when we first discovered them are often ‘older’ books now. There is no issue with this, so many stories are timeless, “The Very Hungry Caterpillar”, “Not Now Bernard”, “The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe”, but what about those that aren’t?
One of my all time favourite books is “The Turbulent Term of Tyke Tyler”, about 15 years ago, I shared it with my class. They tolerated it, they didn’t hate it, but the cultural references to the politics of the late 70s and the way in which a school worked was alien to them - the worst thing for me at the time was that when the ‘moment’ happened towards the end it simply passed them by! A book that shatters stereotypes, a book that leads you astray for its whole length, builds up chapter after chapter and they missed it.
I was heartbroken. Then I got over myself and realised why.
The books on shelves of bookshops now are written in modern times and they reflect a world in which the children live. Children can identify with that world as it has things in it that they understand, even if they have historical or fantasy settings. There are tables in Waterstones (other book shops are available) with lovely new printings of old classics like “The Incredible Journey”, “The Jungle Book”, “Alice in Wonderland” and “Swallows and Amazons” and these are undoubtedly fabulous stories, but they have a language and style that can be challenging and from my experience can put some children off. Our older favourites reflect a world we understand but sometimes they don’t.
OK, before I get leapt upon from a great height...
Yes, absolutely children need access to and experience of challenging texts and stories. We know what the expectations are for our 11 year olds in May and the depth and complexity of the language they need to be able to comprehend and manipulate. ‘Classic’ literature has its place and definitely should feature on our class bookshelves and feature in the books we read to children and have them read for their experience and pleasure.
Simon Smith (@smithsmm) said that teachers should be experts in the books they use with their pupils and I agree. I have always been a reader but have read almost 70 books in the last year, from picture books to longer children/young adult fiction. It has open my eyes to what I have been missing. I feel better placed to talk to children about books and can link themes in the new books available to the older classics.
A class bookshelf should have a wide range of books, but features authors who are going to produce more books. Roald Dahl’s catalogue is ended, so has that of Gene Kemp, Clive King, Enid Blyton and Betsy Byers, but Frank Cotterell-Boyce, Abi Elphinstone, Jennifer Killick, SF Said, Sophie Anderton, Polly Ho Yen, Malorie Blackman will produce more books for children to pick up and develop their own favourites.
There is an important place for ‘classics’ and ‘staples’, but for me to love reading into the future, children need the authors of now, who become the authors of their childhood. Dahl, Kemp et al were writing in the 70s and 80s, today’s children need today’s books.
Now, if only there was a place that children, families and teachers could go to where they could find a huge selection of literature and expert adults who know about the books, where they could perhaps ‘borrow’ these books for a short fixed period of time completely free, before returning them and exchanging them for others… that would be a magical place!
Any thoughts or comments, please share below...
Should they be the books we as teachers deem as high quality, or should it be the books on the shelves of the bookshops?
This was an Instagram poll I trundled past and answered. Nothing out of the ordinary there, but I then received a message from the poller saying that I was the only person, out of about 30, who has voted that a book corner should be full of books that children can find in the shops. He was curious as to why I had made that decision, so I made my reply.
In terms of the books we recommend or encourage children to read, it should be a balance.
Great stories are and always will be great stories, however, the books we grown ups remember as great stories from when we first discovered them are often ‘older’ books now. There is no issue with this, so many stories are timeless, “The Very Hungry Caterpillar”, “Not Now Bernard”, “The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe”, but what about those that aren’t?
One of my all time favourite books is “The Turbulent Term of Tyke Tyler”, about 15 years ago, I shared it with my class. They tolerated it, they didn’t hate it, but the cultural references to the politics of the late 70s and the way in which a school worked was alien to them - the worst thing for me at the time was that when the ‘moment’ happened towards the end it simply passed them by! A book that shatters stereotypes, a book that leads you astray for its whole length, builds up chapter after chapter and they missed it.
I was heartbroken. Then I got over myself and realised why.
The books on shelves of bookshops now are written in modern times and they reflect a world in which the children live. Children can identify with that world as it has things in it that they understand, even if they have historical or fantasy settings. There are tables in Waterstones (other book shops are available) with lovely new printings of old classics like “The Incredible Journey”, “The Jungle Book”, “Alice in Wonderland” and “Swallows and Amazons” and these are undoubtedly fabulous stories, but they have a language and style that can be challenging and from my experience can put some children off. Our older favourites reflect a world we understand but sometimes they don’t.
OK, before I get leapt upon from a great height...
Yes, absolutely children need access to and experience of challenging texts and stories. We know what the expectations are for our 11 year olds in May and the depth and complexity of the language they need to be able to comprehend and manipulate. ‘Classic’ literature has its place and definitely should feature on our class bookshelves and feature in the books we read to children and have them read for their experience and pleasure.
Simon Smith (@smithsmm) said that teachers should be experts in the books they use with their pupils and I agree. I have always been a reader but have read almost 70 books in the last year, from picture books to longer children/young adult fiction. It has open my eyes to what I have been missing. I feel better placed to talk to children about books and can link themes in the new books available to the older classics.
A class bookshelf should have a wide range of books, but features authors who are going to produce more books. Roald Dahl’s catalogue is ended, so has that of Gene Kemp, Clive King, Enid Blyton and Betsy Byers, but Frank Cotterell-Boyce, Abi Elphinstone, Jennifer Killick, SF Said, Sophie Anderton, Polly Ho Yen, Malorie Blackman will produce more books for children to pick up and develop their own favourites.
There is an important place for ‘classics’ and ‘staples’, but for me to love reading into the future, children need the authors of now, who become the authors of their childhood. Dahl, Kemp et al were writing in the 70s and 80s, today’s children need today’s books.
Now, if only there was a place that children, families and teachers could go to where they could find a huge selection of literature and expert adults who know about the books, where they could perhaps ‘borrow’ these books for a short fixed period of time completely free, before returning them and exchanging them for others… that would be a magical place!
Any thoughts or comments, please share below...
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