A Novel Approach

Here at The Literacy Tree, we often find ourselves recommending different books for different purposes without qualifying exactly why. One might be wonderful for phonic application, another as a guided reader or a teaching text. Lately we have found ourselves talking about the power of the class novel and how some books seem perfectly placed to fill this role (imagine a world where books had to fill in applications for different jobs…!) But if you’re lucky enough to say you have text-rich English provision, then sometimes it is difficult to justify the extra time spent on reading aloud.

Historically the class novel had a distinct place in the primary day. Often placed at the end of the day and seen as a calming down activity of sorts, it was a time when the teacher would choose a book ‘off-timetable’ and unrelated to the curriculum, but just for the sake of it being a really good book. This primary reason is still valid of course (modelling reading for pleasure is key to building a reading culture) and we know there is intrinsic value in simply being read to. We know from personal experience how rewarding it is when the children ask you to read, so they can find out what happens next – and in most cases when the teacher is reading along with them (I know very few cases where the teacher uses the same class novel as previous years; it’s a fabulous excuse to read something current or a classic never visited) For some children, who are never read to at home, it is the opportunity to get the ‘big-picture’ of a book they might not ever have access to and there is a place for reading to the child who is the weak decoder, so that they can still enjoy a book without having to focus on the phonics.

There is no reason to only have it at the end of the day of course. We recently polled a group of teachers and there were a myriad of timeslots filled: during handwriting; at the start of the day; just before assembly; on a school trip during lunch as well as at the end of the day when children are ‘finishing off’ or mind-mapping their day’s learning. Many teachers see it as a ’go to’ to fill a piece of time here and there as keeping it going is key.

But choosing the class novel can be a potential minefield. We’ve found ourselves starting books that nobody wants continued. It’s crucial that the book has mass-appeal and isn’t more suited to one group in the class than the other of course. The genres that work well – in our humble opinion – are the adventure and fantasy books. Reading a ‘diary genre’ really does not convert well to being read aloud and neither does a book that is heavy on factual information. A good story can take you places, help you to visualise and allow your mind to reflect deeply whilst talking on the essential elements of the narrative. There’s a meditative state that the mind can take on whilst within a narrative or a piece of music that allows creative connections to take place.

Often the books that are too long for guided reads or as teaching text to use in whole-class literacy/English fit the bill. Sometimes it’s a fantastic opportunity to read a book that complements a topic/curriculum area which otherwise would be missed. But often it's the chance to bond as a class over a shared experience, a felt emotion through the reading aloud which ripples silently through the class.

Choosing books recently nominated for books prizes often work well, the Carnegie or Blue Peter being great sources, but do check the recommended ages as some of them do wander into the issue-laden territory of Young Adult range that you may want to avoid just yet.

So we’ve put together a little list of some of our favourites. A mere scraping of the great books that can do this job. A job that if we were a book, we certainly would be making an application for.