Tribute to a literacy champion
For any readers who missed it, here is yesterday’s Guardian obituary and tribute to the inspirational Wendy Cooling, editor of numerous collections of poetry and short stories, moving force behind Bookstart, energetic and effective promoter of books and reading for all children.
Useful resources for teachers and home schoolers
Part of the Open University’s extensive Reading for Pleasure website is dedicated to Supporting Reading at Home, which has a wealth of practical ideas for teachers running remote reading sessions, and for those of us home schooling. There are links to some fantastic authors reading their works. I would urge everyone to watch this BookTrust video of Kwame Alexander reading, to a rapt audience of school children, his powerful and moving book, The Undefeated, beautifully illustrated by Kadir Nelson.
Book awards announced
UKLA organise the only national awards judged by classroom teachers, who look for texts that can “enhance all aspects of literacy learning”. This year there is a new category for information books, and importantly the judging criteria were revised to make the awards more diverse and inclusive. The panel’s shortlist included a strong showing for poetry and works in translation and featuring debut authors and debut publishers as well as more familiar names. Here are the winners, announced at an online event on Friday evening:
