Growing up, I loved to live in a world of imagination (to be fair, I still do!). If my Mum wasn’t reading me story after story, poem after poem, I was role playing or making up my own magical tales inspired by the words and pictures my Mum gifted me. There’s no doubt about it, I was immersed in storytelling: The Magic Porridge Pot, Miffy, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Meg and Mog, Beatrix Potter, Rudyard Kipling, Oscar Wilde and Hans Christian Anderson all come to mind when I fondly muse those years. I hope my own children vividly regale similar stories of endlessly playing with words. For them, it will be Peace at Last, Molly’s Jolly Brolly, Tiddler, The Gruffalo, Flyaway Katie and We’re Going on a Bear Hunt to name but a few.

Entering the wonderful world of teaching, picture books have continued to be a staple in my literary diet, across Early Years and up to Year 6: picture books are as relevant to a five-year old as to an 11-year old (and, of course, beyond!).

Today, in my role as Literacy Consultant at Literacy Tree, I find myself in a privileged position of accessing a never-ending pot of magical books. To choose five of my favourite picture books is a tall order, impossible in fact! Those I have chosen here hold a special place in my heart and will forever remain on my bookshelf. I hope you can also connect with them or are inspired to use them in your classroom.

Flyaway Katie by Polly Dunbar

My daughter’s favourite book that tells an inspiring flight of fancy about the power of imagination. It’s the story of Katie, who is feeling grey with no one to play with. To cheer herself up, she puts on all her favourite bright clothes and paints herself bright colours; the magic happens when she flies into the picture on her bedroom wall. Author, Polly is the co-founder of Long Nose Puppets, an award-winning puppet company, which has made wonderful adaptations of the books.

We’re Going on a Bear Hunt by Helen Oxenbury and Michael Rosen

This classic chant-aloud, favoured by my son, is evidence for the power of rhythm and rhyme and the rich opportunities they provide for physical, sensory, and language development. Following the family's excitement as they wade through the grass, splash through the river and squelch through the mud in search of a bear, it teaches children to face fears, persevere and work as a team. This book’s rhythm, rhyme and pictures transcended language in a rural school in Sri Lanka that I volunteered at: I will never forget the sheer joy in the children’s faces as they repeated the story and acted the pages!

The Lost Happy Endings by Carol Ann Duffy

I remember the day I first fell into this book, on my PGCE. My tutor was inspirational in bringing the text to life and showing me how to teach literacy through a rich picture book. A tale woven with exquisite language, set in a deep dark forest, and featuring Jub, a wicked witch and a golden pen that can write on the fabric of night itself. It explores themes of hope, imagination, and empowerment, and challenges the notion that life must always adhere to predetermined, perfect outcomes, suggesting that individuals have the agency to create their own paths, even when faced with adversity. 

We have a Writing Root available for this one. 

Escape From Pompeii by Christina Balit

The first picture book I taught through, in a Year 3 class, it communicates the story of two children who live in Pompeii at the time of the famous eruption of Vesuvius in AD79. The captivating illustrations and literary language allow readers to follow the children’s footsteps as they come to terms with the destruction of their city and find their own routes to freedom. This text lends itself to rich oracy opportunities and purposeful writing outcomes. I’ll never forget setting up a press conference for 120 journalists (aka children!) to interview four members of Pompeii’s community (aka teachers in disguise!) in order for the children to produce news reports.

We have a Writing Root available for this one. 

Flotsam by David Wiesner

I had to pick this book because I adore the sea and am an avid beachcomber! This wordless picture book is about a boy who discovers a vintage camera washed up on a beach. It unspools like a silent film, allowing the camera and its secrets to take the boy on an extraordinary visual journey into an undersea otherworld where he makes unexpected connections across continents and through time. This was one of the last texts I taught through, so has a special place in my heart; the vintage cameras I bought, to hook my class into the book, sit proudly on a bookshelf and I still wonder what stories they have captured over time.

We have a Writing Root available for this one.