Information books books take centre stage during the month of November, with numerous awards and celebrations taking place, including the SLA Information Book Award and National Non-Fiction Month. The Reading Agency have also just published a Non-Fiction Info Challenge aimed at their Chatterbooks reading clubs. Here are some more details.
SLA Information Book Award
The SLA Information Book Award was established in 2011 to promote non-fiction titles and is judged by librarians and experts in the bookselling industry. However, children can also vote for their favourite shortlisted book – the winner of which will receive the “Children’s Choice” award.
The winning books will be announced next week, on Wednesday, 7th November. Teachers may find the suggested activities to help students explore the shortlisted books useful. Here are the categories and the shortlisted books, which are all available in the Curriculum Centre:
Under 7
Look I’m a Scientist (by various authors)
Proud to be Deaf by Ava, Lilli, Nick Beese and Romina Marti
Rock Pool Secrets by Narelle Oliver
7 – 12 years
100 Things to Know About Food (by various authors)
Dinosaur Atlas by Anne Rooney & James Gilleard
Real-Life Mysteries by Susan Martineau and Vicky Barker
The Ways of the Wolf by Smriti Prasadam-Halls & Jonathan Woodward
12 – 16 years
Escape from Syria by Samya Kullab, Jackie Roche & Mike Freiheit
Explanatorium of Nature (by various authors)
From Prejudice to Pride: A History of LGBTQ+ Movement by Amy Lame
Federation of Children’s Book Groups
The Federation of Children’s Book Groups (FCBG) celebrates National Non-Fiction November every year and this year is a special one, as it’s the organisation’s 50th anniversary. The theme of this year’s Golden National Non-Fiction November is “Food and Festivals around the World”. There are plenty of resources and activities available on their website that can be used in the classroom, including a list of recommended books for exploring the theme. Students can also enter a competition to design a birthday cake for FCBG’s 50th anniversary, giving details of flavours and colours involved. The closing date for entries is the 7th December.
Reading Agency – Non-Fiction Info Challenge
The Reading Agency has just released a Non-Fiction Info Challenge aimed at their Chatterbooks reading clubs. The pack focuses on 6 information books and provides some suggestions/activities on how to explore them with the reading club. Here are the 6 books that they have selected:
Happy : A Children’s Book of Mindfulness by Nicola Edwards & Katie Hickey
So You Think You Know About Spinosaurus by Dr Ben Garrod
Lift the Flap Engineering by Rose Hall and Alex Frith
Timelines of Everything by DK & Smithsonian Institution
The Nobel Book of Answers by Bettina Stiekel
National Trust 2019: Nature Month-By-Month: A Children’s Alamanac by Anne Wilson & Elly Jahnz
Have you a favourite non-fiction book? Or did you encourage a child to read using a particular non-fiction book? Feel free to leave a comment and let us know.