The last few months, since Christmas, have been a little odd due to some health issues. I had got a list of events and conferences to go to and unfortunately have had to miss out on several of them. However I have not been totally defeated and last week managed to get up to London for back to back events. The first was a presentation of the autumn highlights from Walker books, with the added bonus of having the amazing Patrick Ness in conversation with his publisher, more on this will be found on “Margaret’s reading shelf” my book blog.
The second event was a School Library Association training day held at the Institute of Education. It was entitled “Reading for Pleasure:edgy, cool or just boring? Make it infectious and survive” and was led by Angie Curran a highly experienced adviser in English and literacy. it was good to get some new ideas, but also to have my knowledge and skills validated by what I heard during the day.
Book trailers and authors’ blogs are a helpful addition to the library and classroom.
A book corner
It was also lovely to have the day in the library training room at the Institute and to have an opportunity to look at the resources they provide for students. Two specific areas took my interest; the first was the series of book corners that had been set up, in order to model best practice for the students when they get out into schools. These were bright, attractive and well themed, using books and other materials to engage the pupils. The second area that I liked was a collection of older materials that had been put out for us to look at. There were books and pamphlets from the early 20th century and we could see the great changes that have happened over the years.
The day itself was focused on secondary education and looked at a range of issues around supporting students and reading for pleasure. there were six main points which were covered, they were:
- why reading for pleasure is essential to pupil’s academic success
- review of schools’ current activities
- adapting current reading activities to improve appeal
- maximizing support
- time management
The use of games and discussion groups meant that we all kept focused on the day and it became a very interactive learning experience. The combination of subject, trainer and venue made this a very successful day.