Resources
The World of Wolf Hall: A Reading Guide to Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall & Bring Up the Bodies
Ahead of the release of The Mirror & the Light, this reading guide takes you through the story so far, introduces you to the main players, explores the key themes and offers reading group questions to discuss.
How to start a LEGO club from DK
Excited about starting up a LEGO Club, but don’t know where to begin? DK have created a pack with some helpful advice and tips on how to construct your very own.
LEGO Harry Potter - activity sheets
Meet all your favourite LEGO Harry Potter minifigures and discover the secrets hidden within Hogwarts Castle. Relive memorable movie moments, including exciting Quidditch matches and spooky adventures in the Forbidden Forest. This pack from DK includes activities about: - Arriving At Hogwarts - Joining A House - Magical Creatures - Potions Class
A Child of Books by Oliver Jeffers and Sam Winston - resources
A CHILD OF BOOKS – WHICH BOOK MADE YOU A CHILD OF BOOKS? Look out for A Child of Books, now out in paperback, the inspiring picture book by Oliver Jeffers and Sam Winston about the rewards of reading and sharing stories – perfect for readers of all ages. To celebrate Libraries Week, Walker will be providing libraries with a fantastic digital pack filled with a guide filled with activities and ideas, postcard and poster so that you can share which books made you “A Child of Books”. You can use...
Somebody Give This Heart a Pen by Sophia Thakur - National Libraries Week poster (exclusive poem)
SOPHIA THAKUR ‘STORIES’ Celebrate Libraries Week with an exclusive poem reflecting on the power of stories and the joy of reading written specially for libraries by acclaimed performance poet Sophia Thakur. Described by Angie Thomas, author of The Hate U Give, as “one of the most brilliant and necessary voices from the UK”, Sophia is the author of Somebody Give This Heart a Pen, a powerful new collection of poems drawing on her experience as a young mixed-race young woman trying to make sense...
The Golden Cage by Anna Castagnoli and Carll Cneut - activity pack
Valentina the emperor’s daughter is an obsessive collector of exotic birds. Her servants track down every bird she desires – just one remains unfound: a bird that talks. Servants search far and wide to fulfill her impossible quest – and she beheads those who fail. In Valentina’s palace, heads roll every day! Will the golden cage ever be filled? A deliciously dark European fairy tale with words as rich as its bold and luxurious illustrations. To celebrate the publication of The Golden Cage,...
October 2019 Children's and Young People booklist - Powerful Poetry
To help you celebrate National Poetry Day on 3 October, we have created a booklist of our favourite works of poetry for children and young people. There are classics as well as newly published books – all selected to help share, discover and enjoy all things poetry! You can join in with the conversation online using #NationalPoetryDay and #PowerfulPoetry and tagging us using @readingagency on Twitter and @SummerReadingChallengeUK on Facebook.
Plastic Sucks! You Can Make A Difference - Plastic Sucks Day Infographics
Plastic is everywhere and it sucks. It fills up our oceans, endangers our wildlife and never goes away. So it’s time to take action, find ways to cut down our plastic use and help protect our environment. Together we can make a difference! As a lifelong supporter of environmental causes and a key player in the campaign to ban microbeads in the UK, Dougie is always on the hunt for ways to reduce and replace plastic. This campaigning book, his first solo authored project, draws on his own...
Plastic Sucks! You Can Make A Difference - Plastic Sucks Day Poster
How can YOU help save our planet? This awesome and inspiring guide, written by McFly bassist and environmental activist Dougie Poynter, will show you how to get involved in the mission to cut out single-use plastic. To help you promote your Plastic Sucks Day download the poster. We would love to see your displays and events on social media using #PlasticSucksDay and #PlasticSucks and tagging @MacmillanKidsUK, @DougiePoynter and @readingagency.
Plastic Sucks! You Can Make A Difference - Plastic Sucks Day Guide
How can YOU help save our planet? This awesome and inspiring guide, written by McFly bassist and environmental activist Dougie Poynter, will show you how to get involved in the mission to cut out single-use plastic. Plastic is everywhere and it sucks. It fills up our oceans, endangers our wildlife and never goes away. So it’s time to take action, find ways to cut down our plastic use and help protect our environment. Together we can make a difference! As a lifelong supporter of environmental...
The Deathless Girls by Kiran Millwood Hargrave - Discussion Questions and book trailer
Gothic, feminist and romantic – The Deathless Girls is the untold story of the brides of Dracula, breathtakingly imagined by bestselling author Kiran Millwood Hargrave, author of The Girl of Ink and Stars. On the eve of her divining, the day she’ll discover her fate, seventeen-year-old Lil and her twin sister Kizzy are captured and enslaved by the cruel Boyar Valcar, taken far away from their beloved traveller community. Forced to work in the harsh and unwelcoming castle kitchens, Lil is...
Wild Girl by Helen Skelton and Liz Kay - author video
Calling wild girls everywhere! Helen Skelton – adventurer, world-record breaker and TV presenter – brings you her inspirational guide to getting outdoors and having incredible adventures. From kayaking the length of the Amazon to cycling to the South Pole and running an ultra-marathon across the Namib desert, the Blue Peter and Countryfile presenter Helen Skelton has taken on record-breaking feats of endurance and shown that adventures definitely are for girls. Helen shares six stories of her...
Tiny and Teeny by Chris Judge - activity sheets
Welcome to Pocket Town, the teeniest, tiniest town around… Deep down, in between the blades of grass, lives Tiny. Can you see her? Keep looking … closer still … squint a bit … yes, there she is! Tiny keeps very busy in the buzzing place of Glengadget. Every day of the week, she has a different neighbour to meet – she does some gardening for Mandy Small, she reads to Bitsy McGee and she gives Minkin a hand with her lively twins. But when disaster strikes (in the shape of a falling leaf), Tiny...
Beverley, Right Here by Kate DiCamillo - Teacher's Notes
Revisiting once again the world of Raymie Nightingale, two-time Newbery Medalist Kate DiCamillo turns her focus to the tough-talking, inescapably tenderhearted Beverly. Beverly put her foot down on the gas. They went faster still. This was what Beverly wanted — what she always wanted. To get away. To get away as fast as she could. To stay away. Beverly Tapinski has run away from home plenty of times, but that was when she was just a kid. By now, she figures, it’s not running away. It’s...
To The Lions - Readers' Guide
Download a readers’ guide for To The Lions by Holly Watt, one of the shortlisted books for the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize 2019. Find out more about the shortlist
The Devil Aspect - Readers' Guide
Download a readers’ guide for The Devil Aspect by Craig Russell, one of the shortlisted books for the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize 2019. Find out more about the shortlist
The Map of Salt and Stars - Readers' Guide
Download a readers’ guide for The Map of Salt and Stars by Zeyn Joukhadar, one of the shortlisted books for the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize 2019. Find out more about the shortlist
Sleeper: The Red Storm - Readers' Guide
Download a readers’ guide for Sleeper: The Red Storm by J.D. Fennell, one of the shortlisted books for the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize 2019. Find out more about the shortlist
Firefly - Readers' Guide
Download a readers’ guide for Firefly by Henry Porter, one of the shortlisted books for the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize 2019. Find out more about the shortlist
Preservation - Readers' Guide
Download a readers’ guide for Preservation by Jock Serong, one of the shortlisted books for the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize 2019. Find out more about the shortlist
The Wizards of Once - KS2 resources
Cressida Cowell’s aim as Waterstones Children’s Laureate is to encourage EVERY child to read for fun and get something out of books. Full of magic and wonder, adventure and danger, friendship and family, her latest series, The Wizards of Once, is the perfect series to get children excited about reading. These comprehensive resources are an excellent way to get children to engage with the text in a fun and educational way. Cressida has a passion for developing the creative intelligence of...
Roald Dahl Day activity sheets and competition from OUP
Get Gobblefunking with Roald Dahl Oxford University Press have some fantabulous activity sheets for children to use and enjoy this Roald Dahl Day (13 September). If you do use the resources in your library or school, we would love to see photos. You can share these by using #DahlDay and tagging @OUPChildrens and @readingagency. Competition There is also a great competition for children aged 13 and under on www.oxfordowl.co.uk/roald-dahl. If they enter they could win: A family ticket to...
SAPIENS, HOMO DEUS and 21 LESSONS FOR THE 21ST CENTURY by Yuval Noah Harari: A reading guide
A reading guide for the books by Yuval Noah Harari including information about the author and discussion points.
Food, Glorious Food
Are you hungry? You might be after looking at our fantastic food themed booklist. Novels, poetry and of course a few cookbooks will keep you busy for hours.
Night Boat to Tangier - Readers' Guide
On 24 July the Booker Prize revealed the longlist of thirteen books for the 2019 prize. Discover the excellent books that have been chosen for the Booker Prize. You can download a Readers’ Guide for shortlisted title Night Boat to Tangier by Kevin Barry by clicking below.
The Wall - Readers' Guide
On 24 July the Booker Prize revealed the longlist of thirteen books for the 2019 prize. Discover the excellent books that have been chosen for the Booker Prize. You can download a Readers’ Guide for shortlisted title The Wall by John Lanchester by clicking below.
My Sister, the Serial Killer - Readers' Guide
On 24 July the Booker Prize revealed the longlist of thirteen books for the 2019 prize. Discover the excellent books that have been chosen for the Booker Prize. You can download a Readers’ Guide for shortlisted title My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite by clicking below.
Lost Children Archive - Readers' Guide
On 24 July the Booker Prize revealed the longlist of thirteen books for the 2019 prize. Discover the excellent books that have been chosen for the Booker Prize. You can download a Readers’ Guide for shortlisted title Lost Children Archive by Valeria Luiselli by clicking below.
Lanny - Readers' Guide
On 24 July the Booker Prize revealed the longlist of thirteen books for the 2019 prize. Discover the excellent books that have been chosen for the Booker Prize. You can download a Readers’ Guide for shortlisted title Lanny by Max Porter by clicking below.
Frankissstein - Readers' Guide
On 24 July the Booker Prize revealed the longlist of thirteen books for the 2019 prize. Discover the excellent books that have been chosen for the Booker Prize. You can download a Readers’ Guide for shortlisted title Frankissstein by Jeanette Winterson by clicking below.
