The Runes Unriddled

'Alva was running. Running so fast the wind whistled in her ears and the braids in her bright red hair lashed against her face. She was like a wolf . . .

Author Dr Janina Ramirez has many accomplishments, a medievalist and cultural historian she is currently a course director at Oxford University and is a regular on BBC history programmes. Here however, is her first foray into the world of children's literature. Supported by wonderful, insightful and historically accurate illustrations by David Wyatt this is sure to be a staple of many bookshelves for years to come.

Ramirez has woven a tale that would rival the very norns that she writes about in Riddle in the Runes. Set in snow swept Kilsgard our main character, the headstrong Alva, is thrown into a world of mystery and intrigue when her family are woken in the dead of night. Her Uncle Magnus, is a close adviser of the village Jarl and his expertise and logic are needed when two strangers appear and rumours of treasure begin to swirl like the snowflakes that blanket this story. However Alva is a keen investigator herself and with the able assistance of her wolf Fenrir she endeavours to help her uncle unwind the web that is becoming more tangled with each passing moment. The mystery threatens to destabilise Kilsgard and it is imperative that Alva and Magnus solve the puzzle that has appeared before them. Through their investigations they begin to realise that the intriguing plot seems to have been delivered to them by Alva's own father, long missing since venturing overseas with a Viking party. Will Alva and Magnus solve the puzzle in time? Will they understand what the runes are trying to tell them? Will Alva ever see her Father again? The Gods only know.

This is a very intriguing story, the characters and plot reveal new details with each chapter and the language, design, illustrations and action lends the book to perfectly sit upon the bookshelves of Years 3 and 4. There is the right amount of Norse subject knowledge woven into this to make it perfect for any classes using Vikings as a topic next year, shorter daylight hours, myths and legends, village structure, trading and raiding are all hinted at without any becoming a focus. With gentle nods to the Norse gods throughout the reader isn’t overwhelmed with the intricacies of Scandinavian customs. An explanation of runes, a Viking glossary and a hint at Alva’s next adventure are all included at the back of the book and lend themselves hugely to being used in class for your own adaptation. If Ramirez didn’t do that on purpose then it is a great coincidence. Whilst older children will still find undeniable enjoyment in the pages of Riddle in the Runes the book itself seems to scream out to the 7, 8 and 9 year olds out there.

I devoured this book, my own passion for Viking history did mean I was a little nervous to open the bright yellow cover however I was more than pleasantly surprised. Whilst shying away from the obvious stereotypes of Viking culture the story is very much that a Viking tale, a sage worthy of sharing round fires in dark winters or between parent and child at bed time. Enjoy.

Check Your Grammar!

Grammar, editing and proof-reading. One area of English teaching that I have always struggled to make engaging, fun, exciting and if I am being honest, truly useful. That’s not to say the skill isn’t. It certainly is, I just worry that my teaching of it isn’t as effective as my teaching of creative writing for example. Whilst scrolling TwitterEd the other evening I stumbled upon a Secondary English teacher who was using dictation from classic authors to give his children a bank of writing styles and a wealth of good sentence structure etc. And I had a light bulb moment so to speak. Couldn’t I do a similar thing to improve my classes editing and proof reading skills. So I had a go.

Now I will be honest I am lucky that I work in a school that I am trusted to roll the dice on a new idea and see what happens and this could’ve flopped. In fact it did. A couple of times. This in itself was brilliant. My class and I sat down and discussed together how we could make this better and this is what happened.

Idea 1: I read out a piece of text and insisted the children used no grammar at all, no full stops or capital letters. Nothing. They were then given ten lives (another idea pinched from the unknown twitter guru). With ten minutes to use they had to go through and using purple pens add in where they felt punctuation was needed. Upon completion of this, I read through the text telling them where the grammar should be. For every incorrect or missed piece they lost a life. This worked, to a degree. It was too abstract, my slower writers struggled to keep up and it was too difficult to see what were intended corrections and where children had written in ones they had got wrong.

Idea 2: Same thing however now children were to write on every other line. This left a space for them to then write their own corrected version above. This made it clearer to follow and easier for them to check their own work. I also typed up the text onto the IWB and revealed it line by line so they only had one line to consider at a time. Furthermore, I highlighted exactly where the punctuation should’ve been used. Better but we still needed to make subsequent corrections clearer.

Idea 3: Same as above however now when we went through the answers the children added in anything they missed using coloured pencil. This was I can see how much of the editing they have got right and what particular punctuation features they missed.

And without being arrogant, it was great. Genuinely one of the best grammar lessons I have ever taught for the following reasons;

1.    I was able to introduce my whole class to extracts of Sky Chasers by Emma Carroll, Brightstorm by Vashti Hardy and The Hobbit by J.R.R.Tolkien in an hour lesson

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2.     We were able to analyse for every single piece of grammar why it was there, why it was needed and what its job was. In one instance a child said ‘it needs a comma because it is two adjectives next to each other’. However in this example the second adjective was in fact acting as a noun. A brilliant teaching point it would’ve taken me much longer to have picked up in other ways.

3.     The element of competitiveness (the lives) makes them close read the entire passage. On occasion I threw in a curve ball by telling them how many corrections they should be making and they reacted with fervor.  

4.    I have a list of specific grammar points that when children are proof reading their own work I can point to and say, you struggled with these issues last time so take a closer look.

5.    It was a real wake up call to some of my children who view themselves as the ‘better’ writers. Many struggled and I genuinely think that they will take the editing and proof reading process more seriously in future.

All of this was done in an hour but it only took that long because we were discussing how to improve the process. It could easily be done in 20 minute sessions. I genuinely feel it will improve my class’ ability to proof read their extended writing no end.

A Peculiar Tale

Gritty Victorian London has always been one of my favourite places. Weird I know. But I love it. The suspense, the darkness, the suspicion and intrigue. It is perfect for a wonderful mystery story and this is exactly what The Peculiars offers up. 

Our story begins locked in a cage at the end of a wind swept pier with a young girl named Sheba. However, Sheba isn’t a ‘normal’ girl. She is part wolf and her thick hair and slanted eyes draw in paying punters who come to look at her and her friend, a two headed sheep! 

Rescued from her cage and sold to a side show in London, Sheba is thrown in with a Samurai woman, a giant of a man and a crowd of other misfits that make up The Peculiars. When one of Sheba’s visitors goes missing upon the banks of The Thames a story begins to unravel that leads to The Great Expedition and trouble! 

I adored this story, it’s fast paced and a quick and easy read but is full of wonderful characterisation and setting description. It’s easy to see how author Kieran Larwood also brought us the wonders of Podkin! 

If you’ve not read this, do! Simple as that. And if you’re studying the Victorians I would argue it’s unmissable. The writing opportunities are so vast it makes my head hurt. 

My Top 10 Reading Lessons

Having had a few requests for some reading lesson suggestions I thought I’d note down a top 10 activities list in the hope that some might find it useful. These have all been taught in a whole class setting, sometimes differentiated sometimes just by outcome. All can be delivered in a 30 minute lesson. I hope they are useful.

1. What were they thinking? Look at an extract ideally with 2 or more characters. The children must explain what is the motivation for a certain reaction or response? Why would they act in such a way. This is a great way to assess whether the children have understood the text on a larger scale, previous issues etc.

2. Prove me a liar. The teacher creates a series of statements about events, feelings or characters and the children have to prove why they are wrong. This again helps at whole texts but can also be used with simply a paragraph. Very easy to differentiate too.

3. Paint me a picture. In most books there will be a section of pure character description. Now on a basic level it means you can simple challenge the children to draw an image of what the text tells us a character looks like. However if you wish to make this more of a challenge you can then ask them to find the phrases or descriptive language that give us an insight into the characters personality. For example in Skychasers, Magpie says she ‘never gives her name to a stranger’. This tells us she is untrusting and cautious as a person.

4. Show me how it happened. Similar to Paint me a Picture this relies on the children reading a specific event happened, a chase, a fight scene or simply a conversation. They then have to draw a picture, labelled ideally, that shows what happened. The chase at the start of Ned’s Circus of Marvels is ideal here as it requires close reading and comprehension skills to follow. This could be extended in many ways, how does each character feel in each stage etc.

5. Feelings Graph. Very simple activity. Pick a scene (I last used the first chapter of The Honest Truth) and ask the children to chart the characters change in emotions as the extract progresses. This will reflect how they respond to different characters and pressures etc.
6. Tension Graph. The same as above but the graph charts the simple changes in tension and atmosphere. You can extend this to pinpoint what language is used in the text to specifically show the most tense points etc.

7. Say it like it is. Speeches are a fantastic resource when it comes to looking at language and how it has changed. By taking a speech and examining it, children can then analyse what is being said and if you wish, modernise the language. This shows several layers of understanding. They first have to decode and interpret what is being said and then compare modern language to older. Finally selecting the modern language they think most appropriate.

8. Who is in charge here? Using an extended extract read along with the children. This is a great opportunity to select a text that you think may be slightly beyond your class’s ability as you can lead the reading. The actual activity involves more inference than anything else. Pick a section with multiple character and then challenge the children to rank them in terms of power in the scene. Who is in charge? How do you know? Who supports whom? How do you know? There are endless extensions here too. For example, do you think this is always the case? If the setting was changed would these characters behave the same etc?

9. A picture paints 1000 emotions. Reading My Name is Not Refugee by Kate Milner totally changed how I use pictures in reading lessons. If you haven’t read it, you must. It’s masterful. In it she uses dual images, one image shows the dream of the main character, one the reality. It’s beautiful and tragic at the same time and can be easily be adopted for reading lessons. Interpreting why a layout or style is used is an essential skill, acting critically is one of the most difficult skills to teach I find but thinking beyond simply why an author used an image to what message are they trying to convey is a wonderful skill to harness. This can work with many texts. The Colin Thompson picture book stalwarts also lend themselves to this in bucketfuls.

10. Question? This has gone out of favour and largely I think it’s because either people think it’s too easy and not actual teaching or they think it’s teaching to the test. However the best way for me to assess whether a child has successfully decoded and comprehended a text is to ask them a range of questions about it. The simple RIC or VIPERS if you are that way inclined. What has happened in X? What does Y mean? Why has the author chosen Z to describe the scene? In my experience children enjoy it and it certainly doesn’t destroy their love for reading. This is used once a week and feeds into my assessment and planning of other sessions.

I hope this list has been useful. Please do shout on my Twitter if you have any questions. I plan to write more extensively on this topic in the summer. Happy reading.

Vashti Hardy’s Brightstorm

Vashti Hardy’s debut novel Brightstorm deserves to be spoken of in the same breaths as Pullman’s Northern Lights. Indeed the similarities are clear to see, frozen landscapes, animals that are drawn to human souls, flying ships and most importantly a fantastic array of detailed and complex characters. 

This is without doubt one of the best books I have read of the last few years. Hardy has moulded a pseudo-real Earth into her own world with place names and phrases that are similar enough to our own to make it seem real but not so similar that it removes the mysticism. Cultures are created, emotions are shared and though an oft used cliche; it really is a total page turner that screams out for many more books in the series. Which I have no doubt there will be. 

Our young heroes, Arthur and Maudie, are left lost and alone upon the death of their father and are suddenly thrown into a world of despair. However, as you may have guessed, they are not destined for Dickensian destitution forever despite being condemned to live in ‘the slumps’. 

They long for more and for answers and the story wastes no time getting them there, the main events kicking off within the opening few chapters. This is a book that will be read for many years and although there were a couple of bits that confused me somewhat, the relevance of a lucky spoon anyone? I adored the smooth story telling, the ease of adventure and the wonderful worlds that Hardy has created. 

Believe the hype. Read this book. 

Should tech take some blame for stress?

We are blessed to live in an age where we can literally see people on the other side of the world, listen to any music we want (sometimes even before it’s released) and binge watch an entire series of Storage Hunters in a day, if we so wish. However this unparalleled wave of technology has swept over humanity and created a world without an off switch, one that is very hard to ever truly detach from. 

In 2016/17 12.5 million working days were lost due to stress, depression or anxiety. This figure has slowly been increasing for the last 2 decades and shows no sign of abating. This is not purely down to increased pressure in the work place from management or external bodies but it is also down to the technology we use when not at work. This increase in days missed from work almost mirrors the developments and progression in technology. Technology that sometimes can make us feel that we are always ‘plugged in’ always on the go. 

I’m not even just talking social media here, though this is obviously a key point. Emails, news, fitness apps that track how many steps you’ve taken but not how many minutes performing breathing exercises you are doing. They block time in our minds and our lives and build this almost subconscious feeling that simply sitting is wasted time. For many adults and young people reading is wasted time. Many would rather tap away on an electronic game than open a wonderful world in pages. 

I’m 100% guilty of this myself. As a teacher I work long hours however as soon as I’m home I use the TeacherTapp app, a research tool that sets new questions at 3:30pm every day. I jump straight on because primarily I’m a bit nosey but also because it’s there. It’s relevant and it’s easy to do. All great factors of it’s design. However do I need to do it everyday? Why am I probably one of a tiny number that hasn’t missed a single day? Once TeacherTapp is finished I’m straight on to reading the news, news that were it hugely significant, would have  flashed up on my phone anyway. But for some reason I almost feel a need to get my daily update on Donald’s disasters. With that complete it’s on to the next thing and the next thing. Before you know it a significant part of the precious free time you do have is gone. For what? What’s the pay off? Where is the benefit of such a daily time investment? There clearly are some. Yet this deluge of data, this influx of information and stream of social media must be impacting the relaxation parts of our brains. Add in to this the witches’ brew of work emails (note I am fortunate to be under literally no obligation to read or respond to work emails out of working hours) and it’s a wonder that people have any ‘off’ time at all. 

The biggest problem is that this is only going to get worse. I love my phone, when it isn’t within 2 meters of me I do start to hyperventilate. However look around you next time you are in a bar or a restaurant and notice the teenagers of today that have almost no interest in their surroundings. Crowds of them sat around tables not even glancing at eachother. The virtual 2inch by 3inch world 8 inches from their faces is far more entertaining, far more relevant. The YouTube stars that the ‘grown ups’ of today love to snobbishly look down on are real to these people, they do count them as an important person in their lives and we must as a society handle this adoration with care. 

I must stress before I cease my rather hypocritical ramblings (I’m writing this on my phone) that I do not blame myself or anyone else for feeling this way. Locking ones mind into your phone is an escape, it can be a relaxation. It can release chemicals that make you feel great. But we are creating a civilisation where we move seamlessly from work to technology  to bed and then repeating the routine day after day. Is it any wonder stress levels, anxiety and depression are all on the rise? 

The Interpretation Game

'When suddenly, thump! thump! down she came upon a heap of sticks and dry leaves, and the fall was over.' Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. This line constitutes part of a reading test that Upper Key Stage 2 may take this year. It is also the key information for what is actually a rather tricky question.

Why does Alice not hurt herself when she falls down the well?

So what do the majority of children do? They utilise the skills that we have taught them, locate the key information and quite rightly answer, 'Alice doesn't hurt herself because she landed on a heap of sticks and dry leaves'. WRONG. At least it is wrong so far as it isn't what the mark scheme wants you to write. We teachers speak often of different types of questions and how we can best arm our miniature soldiers for facing them and this gem is down to interpretation. The correct answer in this instance, according to the mark scheme, is that she was dreaming and therefore couldn't have hurt herself. I personally think that is a long stretch for a 9 year old to work out especially when you consider that most are going to be facing this text for the first time with perhaps only a vague knowledge of this story as a film. In fact I feel that many adults would perhaps have answered in a similar way.

Welcome to the wonderful world of interpretive questioning.

This is, not to put too fine a point on it, a minefield of misinformation and frankly a bizarre way to view reading. Many of our greatest stories are now pushed through to the big screen where many decry 'ah but it's not as good as the book'. Why? Why is that? Largely because it wasn't how they imagined it. We all had a different image of Hogwarts castle in our mind, a different understanding of how invisibility works when you wear the one ring and a different way to pronounce the BFG's wonderful idioms. This isn't to criticise those films in the slightest, but it is important to remember when discussing books with children that interpretation is individual. True there may be many views that are shared by the majority. However that doesn't prevent someone from seeing a situation in a different way.

The Alice example is a good one. One can interpret from the text that Alice is an adventurous girl and therefore likely to be an active child, one happy to climb trees and explore her surroundings. Therefore a perfectly legitimate interpretation as to why she didn't hurt herself in her fall is the fact that is experienced in climbing and falling and simply knew what to do upon hitting the ground. I know this is a somewhat exaggerated example but if we insist on telling children there is a right answer (at least in terms of tests) then we must explicitly discuss the difference between their own interpretation and one that is deemed universal. 

During whole class reading we spend a deal of time looking at how we can interpret different stories. Take the opening chapter of Cogheart by Peter Bunzl. We examined who John was and why he was in an airship with a mechanical fox. As we read we naturally start making assumptions, this is true of adults as well as children. I stress to my class that as long as they can evidence their interpretation it is valid and worth discussing. We came up with over a dozen different interpretations, some are included here.

1. John is an escaped convict and the future police are chasing him. (We discussed how likely this was as our own knowledge of police would have suggested some sort of warning that he should surrender and that him being a bad person seemed unlikely as he selflessly allows Malkin to escape.)
2. John is running away because he has stolen Malkin and he must be valuable as he is a talking fox. (We discussed that Malkin seems to care for John as he tries to save him and that as they are in a flying ship clearly robotics have developed in the future.)
3. Lily must be John's wife because he sends his last message to her and asks Malkin to help her. (On the evidence we had at the time of finishing Chapter 1 this is an entirely sound interpretation of the facts.)

In fact Lily isn't John's wife, however we spent time discussing who else she could be and decided collectively that a perhaps more accurate interpretation would be that she is someone John cares about and has a bond with as he uses the term 'My Lily'.

This is what I refer to as the Second Layer of Interpretation.

The First Layer is simply walking alongside the main character, as we would in our daily lives. Alice didn't hurt herself because she landed on sticks and leaves. Straightforward, almost a retrieval question in it's simplicity.

In the Second we try to detach from the world we have joined in our reading and start to analyse what may have happened in the events prior to the ones we are part of. Alice didn't hurt herself as she is an adventurous girl and therefore experienced in climbing and falling. These are leaps and are often based on our own knowledge or experiences and thus individual.

In the Third layer we then talk about what is the most logical interpretation, have we considered all of the events in detail that could influence our understanding. Alice is a perfect example here, if we went back to the very beginning of the text it tells us that she is sleepy. If we were interpreting and analysing thoroughly then we may come to the conclusion that she doesn't hurt herself as she is in fact dreaming.

This is a very hard skill, it requires holding multiple themes and pieces of information simultaneously in the readers mind for perhaps the entire text or story. However it is a skill that is worth tackling. Not just to answer questions but to fully appreciate and understand themes, emotions and consequences in many texts. Imagine if we had known that Snape had cried over Lily Potter's body whilst Harry was still in his crib, our interpretation of his behaviour throughout the rest of the Harry Potter saga would have been entirely different.

It takes time to develop this way of thinking within a classroom, a lot of it is talk based and sharing ideas. I now give my class an interpretation and they must find evidence to disprove it. We do this together, we examine action and consequence and they are far better at empathising now than ever before.