No fewer than 11 acclaimed and award-winning children’s authors, poets and illustrators will share their passion for reading as Trent College and its junior school, The Elms, in Derbyshire celebrate their Read To Succeed Week next week (12 – 16 October).
The week has been designed to inspire young people to embrace the huge variety of types of writing to become regular readers, whether they enjoy fiction, real life stories, journalism or poetry, and read books and printed material or online.
On each day at least two writers will visit the schools, with some events being attended by children from other local schools too, reading extracts of their books, hosting Q&A sessions and running workshops to really bring the written word to life for pupils.
Meg Rosoff, winner of the 2007 Carnegie Book Award for ‘Just in Case’, is just one of the authors taking part in Read to Succeed week. Her book, ‘How I Live Now’, was made into a 2013 film staring Oscar-nominated actress (Atonement) Saoirse Ronan and Wolf Hall’s Tom Holland.
Football journalist and kids’ football stories writer, Dan Freedman, adventure comic creator, Garen Ewing, multiple Poetry Slam champion, Ash Dickinson, cartoonist Mark Wilcox, and academic (Chemistry), Dr. Simon Cotton, will all be showcasing the variety in reading through their sessions.
Meanwhile, children and teen authors Phil Earle, Bali Rai, Kate Maryon, Caroline Lawrence and Daniel Blythe will also discuss the fun and escapism of storytelling and how books can help young people identify and deal with issues and dilemmas they may be facing.
Claire Scothern, Head of Library Services at Trent College, has organised the week. She said: “Our wish for the Read to Succeed week is to increase reading for pleasure, inspire and build confidence in those who don’t regularly read, and raise the profile of reading in a fun and engaging way.
“In this week-long focus, we can really put reading at the forefront of students’ minds, with a great programme of visiting writers and related activities going on throughout both schools.”
Last month Education Secretary, Nicky Morgan, supported by children’s author and comedian David Walliams, issued a rallying cry to make English pupils the most literate in Europe in five years. Currently, nine and 10-year-olds in England are ranked sixth in Europe.
Ms Morgan said, “If a child fails to learn how to read, the consequences can be nothing short of devastating, holding them back for the rest of their lives. I am absolutely determined to make sure that every child, no matter where they live or what their background, learns to read, to read widely and to read well, giving them the best opportunity to get on in life.”
To find out more about Read To Succeed Week at Trent College and The Elms visit www.trentcollege.net