Posted on: 01/05/2016
We are often asked to recommend books for particular year groups, and we know all-too-well how vital it is to match a text to children's interests as well as finding content that is age-appropriate and readable. So what happens when you find a book that doesn't fit quite so readily into any of the above categories? What happens when a book could be approached and interpreted by a five-year-old in one way and by an eleven-year-old completely differently. This is where the concept of using a whole-school text comes into play: the opportunity for each year group to explore the same text, at the same time. However, although the book may be the same, the journey through it will be as varied and rich as the children's interpretations allow for.
So, what is a whole-school text? These are the sorts of books that can often be read on several levels: the story and its subtext often telling differing tales. The narrative is frequently multi-layered meaning interpretation is open-ended and there is often no sense of a right or a wrong reading. These are books that require you to look and look again; that most definitely ask more questions than they give answers to. The best of these books lend themselves to both fiction and non-fiction written outcomes, and the scope to write purposefully and make links across the broader curriculum is heightened. They are frequently wordless or have little language, as they can be so readily accessed by children of all abilities and read on a number of levels. Where there is text, those where the author is also the illustrator often have the most resonance as the illsutrations contradict or twist the narrative, or vice versa.
What we loved about using a book like Journey by Aaron Becker, is that younger children were able to retell their interpretation of the narrative, often quite literal in their understanding, whereas more sophisticated readers tended to pitch in at a thematic level, making inferences about character thoughts, feelings and motivations. As a result, the outcomes were pertinent to the interests and the abilities of each year groups as children took their own particular stance on the text and the ideas explored within. It is important to stress how essential the shared writing stage is in this process - each teacher taking their role in supporting the process of interpretation and guiding children of differing abilities on their own personal journey through the text.
We have long been fan of a whole-school approach. It gives all children a real sense of buy-in, allowing the opportunity to engage in a shared sense of purpose and as a result create some really meaningful outcomes. Whether this be a book, a piece of artwork, an event (the discovery of the mystery giant-egg or the alien landing). The level of engagement is so tangible; discussions in the playground are a joy to overhear as children from upper key stage two share their experiences with infants - the buzz about the book is palpable. It is wonderful to be able to chart children's writing experiences across an entire school - they make for the best displays.
We recently worked with a school who were about to embark on a project from an immersive theatre company that were building a 'Lost Lending Library' in their main hall and who wanted all children to have had experience of reading 'How to Live Forever' - a wonderful book by Colin Thompson that explores some quite complex themes around mankind's desire to stay alive and never grow old. We worked with the school to develop a whole-school teaching sequence to ensure children could all access the text at their own level - although their starting points were often the same. It was extremely beneficial to be able to tie the thematic links together with a visit from the theatre company and explore the issues in greater detail. What stood out here was that the text was interpreted by children in ways that could not have been predicted by their teachers - the younger children often seeing content that their older counterparts missed: the detail in the illustrations; the hidden narratives; the possibilities for alternative endings, while their older peers often explored the sophisticated themes with more maturity; played on the language and its inferred meanings; and explored characters motivations more deeply.
These whole-school events can often seem daunting at first as we lay ourselves bare as practitioners: What if our interpretation is incorrect? What if the children just don't 'get it'? What if I accidentally cover the same objectives or outcomes as a teacher from another year group? The key point to hold on to here, as we often find ourselves sharing with children (and adults) we work with, is that there is no wrong reading with books like these - only different types of the right reading. Schools may wish to initially work together as a whole to identify and deconstruct themes (one school with whom we worked took a theme each using 'Flotsam'', and share outcomes to ensure overlap doesn't happen. Some schools we know planned for a week, while others carried on for a whole half term - branching out into other books with similar themes and conventions later on. There really was no wrong approach or interpretation - each child's experience layering upon the next' to build upon a collaborative understanding and enjoyment of the book.
The benefits of using these texts resonate across the whole school. From a shared sense of purpose and engagement to the ability to create book talk between year groups, from collaborative cross-year group planning to enhanced knowledge and understanding of texts and authors (teachers and pupils alike), there are countless reasons to embark on a whole-school text experience. To start this journey off, we have selected and compiled just a few of our favourites together in this list although no doubt this list will grow and grow.
Here's a link to our Whole School Texts book list.
School members can access out Whole School Sequences here.
