Ten new books in Scots have been awarded funding by the Scots Language Publication Grant.
Now in its third year, the Scots Language Publication Grant was created by the Scots Language Resource Network to support Scots publishers and to encourage Scots writers. It is funded by the Scottish Government and administered by Scottish Book Trust, the national charity changing lives through reading and writing.
This year’s successful awardees include translations of well-loved stories such as Aesop’s Fables by Matthew Fitt and James Robertson, and Lemony Snicket by Thomas Clark. Brian Holton will also reimagine poetry of Li Bai and Du Fu (two of the most renowned poets of Ancient China) to new audiences.
Applications were assessed by a panel with expertise in Scots and publishing, including a representative of the Scots Language Centre, Scottish Book Trust and Waterstones.
Three publishers based in Edinburgh were awarded Scots Publication Grants: Itchy Coo (an imprint of Black & White Publishing), Leamington Books and Taproot Press.
The successful titles are:
A Series o Scunnersome Events, Book the First: The Boggin Beginnin (Itchy Coo) by Thomas Clark and illustrated by Brett Helquist
A Working Class State of Mind (Leamington Books) by Colin Burnett
Berries Fae Banes (Tippermuir) by Jim Macintosh
Hard Roads an Cauld Hairst Winds: Li Bai an Du Fu in Scots (Taproot Press) by Brian Holton
Laird Graham an the Kelpie (Giglets Education) by Jax McGhee
Norlan Lichts (Rymour Books) by Sheena Blackhall, Sheila Templeton and Lesley Benzie
Phantom the Ginger Mog (Wee Stoorie Press) by Kirsty Johnson and illustrated by Mandy Sinclair
The Day It Never Got Dark In Dundee (Rymour Books) by Ian Spring
The Itchy Coo Book o Aesop’s Fables in Scots (Itchy Coo) by Matthew Fitt and James Robertson, illustrated by Emma Chichester Clark
Wheesht (Foggie Toddle Books) by Susi Briggs and illustrated by William Gorman.
The Scots Language Publication Grant provides assistance for publishing new work (including translated texts), reprinting existing historical or culturally significant work, and also effective marketing and promotion of existing and new work.
Education Secretary, Shirley-Anne Somerville said:“The Scottish Government is pleased to continue to support the Scots Publication Grant for a third year.
“We have seen how this funding can develop talent while widening accessibility of a variety of genres, with titles both new and old, to the Scots speaking community. My congratulations to those who have been successful this year.”
Rhona Alcorn, CEO of Dictionaries of the Scots Language and Chair of The Scots Language Resource Network, said:“The Scots Language Publication Grant plays a hugely important role in supporting Scots as a contemporary literary medium.
“This year’s winning titles illustrate the breadth of creative work in Scots today and truly include something for everyone.”
Marc Lambert, CEO of Scottish Book Trust, said:“Scottish Book Trust is pleased to offer Scots Publication Grants to these ten new titles.
“The diversity in genre and subject matter of the successful awardees is fascinating: from children’s stories to poetry; from classic tales we grew up with, to ancient Chinese poetry. Our thanks to the Scottish Government and the Scots Language Resource Network for making this grant possible.”
You can watch all our 2021 events from home, or visit our new Festival Village at @eca_edinburgh, where you can browse our Festival Bookshop, enjoy events streamed to a screen in the open air and join us in-studio for select events (on sale 22 July). https://t.co/3lwO5QT13Epic.twitter.com/FybDGkQI1B
— Edinburgh International Book Festival (@edbookfest) July 6, 2021
After a universally challenging year, it’s onwards and upwards as EIBF launch 2021’s exciting programme of live, online Book Festival events.
A stellar line-up of over 300 writers, artists and thinkers from around the globe come together this August to share their ideas and stories for a changing world – and all online events are available to book from today.
During the Festival dates, 14-30 August, enjoy more than 250 events for adults, children and families online, all available to watch on a Pay What You Can basis. Online events offer the opportunity to chat with fellow book lovers and connect with authors by asking questions in our live Q&As.
You can also catch up on events at a time that suits, and there’s unlimited ticket availability for the online programme, so you needn’t worry about missing out. Visit our How To Book page for all the information you’ll need.
In this exciting new chapter for the Book Festival, a wide range of the live-streamed events will also have in-person audiences at our new Festival home, the University of Edinburgh’s Edinburgh College of Art.
Around half of our participants will appear in person in Edinburgh, while others join digitally from their homes around the world. Tickets for socially-distanced in-person events will go on sale from midday on 22 July.
The Book Festival Bookshop will open its doors again during this year’s Festival and you’ll find it located in the beautiful Old Fire Station building at our new site on Lauriston Place. Our online bookshop is open 24/7 and will feature titles from authors in the 2021 programme. Selected authors will be offering book signings online and in-person too.
EIBF Director, Nick Barley, said: “We are incredibly excited to produce our first ‘hybrid’ festival with authors and audiences joining us both in person and online. We welcome a mix of Scottish and international voices to discuss their ideas, hopes and dreams and we aim to explore together how to move ‘Onwards and Upwards’ from this devastating pandemic.
“In our new home at Edinburgh College of Art we have created three broadcast studios, two of which can accommodate limited audiences. These new facilities enable us to offer author conversations to worldwide audiences and to those closer to home who are unable to join us in person, as well as welcoming a limited In-Real-Life audience.
“The Book Festival is at the forefront of the re-emergence of public events, and we have a duty of care to our authors, audiences and staff. It is important that we help rebuild confidence and we have therefore chosen to retain 1 metre social distancing for audiences in the studios. This gives us a reduced capacity of 100 in the New York Times Sculpture Court and 60 in the Baillie Gifford West Court.
“Outside in the courtyard we are recreating the ‘village green’ element of the Book Festival that our audiences enjoy with a bookshop, café, family play area, seating spaces and a big screen upon which a number of the live events will be shown.
“The Book Festival has always aimed to be an oasis of calm and, as ever, this will be a space for audiences to chat, relax, read a book and while away the hours in the summer sunshine.”
Although we can’t promise sun, we will be bringing hundreds of the world’s best writers and thinkers to take part in live conversations this August, including events with Nobel Prize winners Amartya Sen and Kazuo Ishiguro, Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o, Booker Prize winners Salman Rushdie, Bernardine Evaristo, Richard Flanagan and Scotland’s own Douglas Stuart (with First Minister Nicola Sturgeon) and many more. You can browse our entire programme now – we’re sure you’ll find plenty to enterain, challenge and inspire.
This year we’re exploring stories and ideas for a changing world, one dealing with the impact of Covid-19, climate change, poverty, inequality and the varied effects of technology, with authors, politicians, doctors and others discussing the overlapping crises we face – and how we can move forward.
Of course, the Baillie Gifford Children’s Programme is full of fun for all ages – with 60 events to take part in from home including readings, draw-alongs, and dancing.We’re also excited to launch a new series of pre-recorded, audio-only events, available from the very start of the Festival, and a range of walking tours and family trails around Edinburgh.
There’s plenty more to see and discover in our packed 2021 programme. The Book Festival is for everyone – whether you are in a position to pay for a ticket or not, whether you join us in person or from your sofa – so join the conversation this August as we all try to make sense of our changing world.
More than 180 school children across three schools in Edinburgh have taken part in a celebratory ‘booknic’ event organised by Fort Kinnaird in partnership with the National Literacy Trust.
The ‘booknic’ involved children enjoying a picnic and a book while also taking part in a range of fun reading-themed activities.
Schoolchildren from St Francis RC Primary School, Castleview Primary School and Niddrie Mill Primary School took part in the event, with each child also able to take a book of their choice home.
The ‘booknic’ was part of the Young Readers Programme, an award-winning initiative sponsored by Fort Kinnaird’s co-owner British Land and run in partnership with the National Literacy Trust, designed to encourage children to read outside of the classroom.
The initiative also gave the schools access to virtual interactive storytelling sessions and a literary quiz.
British Land and the National Literacy Trust celebrates its 10th year in partnership this year. Since the programme launched in Edinburgh, it has supported more than 2,000 schoolchildren and seen more than 6,100 books donated across the city.
Research from the National Literacy Trust shows that children who own their own books are six times more likely to read above the level expected for their age and three times more likely to enjoy reading.
Liam Smith, centre director at Fort Kinnaird, said:“Supporting our community is so important to us and the Young Readers Programme plays a massive part in that. It’s a brilliant initiative which we look forward to every year and it’s great to see the children celebrating at our booknic event.
“Thanks also needs to go to the National Literacy Trust for their hard work on this event and over the years. They’ve helped us to ensure that the additional support and books go to those who need them most.”
Jonathan Douglas CBE, Chief Executive of the National Literacy Trust, said: “Encouraging children to develop a love of reading from a young age can have a tangible impact on their literacy skills, mental wellbeing and futures.
“Yet hundreds of thousands of children across the UK are missing out on these benefits simply because they don’t have a book of their own to read at home.
“The Young Readers Programme, with support from British Land, tackles this and we’d like to thank them for all their support over the years.”
Fort Kinnaird has gifted £1,250 worth of books to Venchie Children & Young People’s Project to be given to children and young people in the South East of Edinburgh.
Venchie’s Children & Young People’s Project helps children and young people in Niddrie with a range of play, recreation, and issue-based youth work.
The donation means that the charity has been able to gift a diverse range of books covering a variety of genres and themes for different age groups, providing local youngsters with stories to read for enjoyment at home.
The books have been delivered by Venchie’s alongside special art boxes by to enable youngsters in the local area to keep being creative during lockdown.
The initiative has been led by Fort Kinnaird’s owner, British Land, and the National Literacy Trust through their ongoing partnership which is now in its tenth year.
This latest contribution is part of the shopping centre’s broader work in the community, which included the donation of 300 books during the first lockdown last year, as well as the installation of a Giving Box at Fort Kinnaird where visitors can make contactless donations to support local charities.
Susan Heron, Manager at Venchie Children & Young People’s Project, said: “The pandemic has impacted the families we help in all kinds of ways, and we’re incredibly thankful for all of the support Fort Kinnaird has given to us.
“These book donations have helped children of all ages across our community who might not have had access to them otherwise.”
Fort Kinnaird, Edinburgh. April 15 2021
Liam Smith, centre director at Fort Kinnaird, said:“We’ve been supporting Venchie’s Children & Young People’s Project for many years, and know they do an incredible job supporting youngsters in the local area.
“The past twelve months have been challenging for all charities, so it’s now more important than ever to keep supporting them as they continue to give back to those most in need.”
Jonathan Douglas, chief executive of the National Literacy Trust, said: “We know that 1 in 11 disadvantaged children do not have a single book at home and that this can be hugely detrimental to their development.
“Initiatives like these ensure local families have books to enjoy at home, and children’s imaginations and literacy skills can continue to thrive.”
Scottish Book Trust, the national charity changing lives through reading and writing, has announced that the recipient of the 2021 Bookbug Hero Award is Kylie Watt, Nursery Practitioner at Longridge Nursery, West Lothian.
Nominated by her colleagues, Kylie has been recognised for dedicating her working career of over 20 years to children and early years education.
The Bookbug Hero Award was announced during Bookbug Week, an annual celebration of Scotland’s national book-gifting programme and Song and Rhyme Sessions.
Bookbug has been central to the nursery’s inclusive and nurturing approach as they returned after a prolonged lockdown due to COVID-19.
Kylie’s work helped transition the children back into the nursery environment and also helped make parents feel involved and valued. She delivered reading sessions in small groups, using books to introduce and consolidate learning objectives such as exploring and recognising rhyme, counting syllables in words, letter recognition, story sequences and retelling the story.
The stories also linked in with health and wellbeing, supporting children in their return to nursery. Kylie’s sessions explored emotions and feelings to enable children to express their own during a difficult transitional period of settling into the new routine of COVID-19 nursery life.
Kylie has been praised for using Bookbug as a consistent point of involvement and contact for parents, to build a bridge between the home and nursery setting. She has equipped the parents with information on how to use Bookbug Bags well and spend quality reading and bonding time with their children. She also maintained online communication with parents during the pandemic.
The nursery also uses a self-developed book-borrowing scheme, which became more important than ever with the closure of libraries during the pandemic. Kylie has provided parents with resources so they are able to explore and address many issues with their children that they may have been anxious about or lacked the knowledge or skills to discuss at a stage appropriate level.
These resources supported the parent-child bond by dealing with events cooperatively and holistically in a method that a child can comprehend. Kylie also fostered a nursery bedtime read initiative as an addition to the Bookbug Explorer Bag gifting.
The Bookbug Hero Award is run in association with Walker Books and seeks to honour someone working with Bookbug who has used the programme to make a real difference to the lives of the young children, families and the communities they work with. As the winner of the Bookbug Hero Award, Kylie will receive a bundle of picture books worth £500 from Walker Books.
Marc Lambert, CEO of Scottish Book Trust, said:“Congratulations to Kylie Watt on winning the 2021 Bookbug Hero Award. In an especially difficult year, Kylie has gone above and beyond to support the children of Longridge Nursery, their parents and her colleagues.
“It is wonderful to hear how Bookbug has been used to assist transition back into the nursery, and how a strong reading culture has supported the young people’s health and wellbeing. Our thanks to Walker Books for sponsoring this important award.”
Kylie Watt said:“I am so proud to be announced as the winner of the Bookbug Hero Award. It was a lovely surprise that my colleagues and parents from Longridge Nursery Class nominated me and gave me recognition for doing a job that I love.
“The award confirms that what I am doing to promote literacy development within our early year’s setting is having a positive impact on our families and children.
“Bookbug Explorer Bags have been an important part of promoting a love of books and the book bags have really helped us on our literacy journey because they give all children the opportunity to access high quality children’s literature and literacy resources.”
Kayleigh Brand, parent, said:“Mrs Watt is an amazing member of staff at Longridge Nursery. She is loved by both the children she helps and teaches, and also by the parents. She always goes above and beyond for the kids, making sure they get every opportunity to practice in multiple activities, such as the Bookbug Bags and big book reading packs they get weekly.
“She also makes sure the parents are aware of what is going on, even in these difficult times. Mrs Watt is an amazing asset to the nursery and deserves to be rewarded or all of her hard work!”
Miss Harte, staff at Longridge Nursery said:“Kylie is fabulous. Her commitment to ensuring each child gets a pack of stories at the Bookbug event and each week with her lending library is second to none.
“When it’s Book Week Scotland, she always comes up with a new and inventive way to engage the children with stories and makes it exciting for the staff team to be involved.”
Jane Winterbotham, Publishing Director at Walker Books, said:“We’re thrilled to be a part of the Bookbug Hero Award, helping to recognise the individuals who go above and beyond to support their community and engender a lifelong love of stories.
“Huge congratulations to Kylie for this well-deserved recognition of her skills and passion!”
The panel for the Bookbug Hero Award included:
Scottish Book Trust staff
Chae Strathie, Children’s author
Dr Suzanne Zeedyk, Honorary Fellow, University of Dundee Founder of connected Baby
Neil Mathers, Chief Executive, Children’s University Scotland
Udita Banerjee, Head of Visibility and Inclusion at Families Outside
Myra Mains, Bookbug Co-ordinator and Bookbug Hero Award Winner 2020
Those highly commended for the Bookbug Hero Award included:
David Murray, Mobile Library Driver at South Ayrshire Libraries (South Ayrshire)
David impacted every baby and toddler in South Ayrshire as he volunteered to deliver the Bookbug Bags throughout lockdown. David’s initiative and willingness to help meant South Ayrshire was able to meet its commitment to deliver Bookbug Bags to every child throughout lockdown.
Shona Macmillan and Lindy Cameron Saunders, Development Officer and Gaelic Development Officer at Urras Oighreachd Ghabhsainn (Western Isles)
Shona and Lindy have gone above and beyond what was expected of them delivering English and Gaelic Bookbug Sessions to families living in rural areas on the Isle of Lewis. Mairi Graham, parent said: “Shona and Lindy’s sessions were a lifesaver for us during lockdown, having just had a newborn, it was a great activity to keep both a baby and two year entertained.”
Nina Greenoak, Bookbug Session Leader Volunteer (West Dunbartonshire)
Nina is a mum who at the start of lockdown set up a Bookbug Zoom Facebook group delivering Bookbug Sessions to a community of over 270 families on a weekly basis. Nina’s enthusiasm and encouragement provided invaluable support to families with songs, stories and rhymes for them to enjoy together at home.
The shortlist for the Bookbug Hero Award included:
Julia Lawrie Morrison, Bookbug Session Leader Volunteer at The Childlike Reader (Aberdeenshire)
Joolz Christie, Library Assistant at Dingwall Library (Highland)
Diane Ireland, Customer Services Advisor at Windmill Library (Fife)
Debbie Smilies, Community Early Years Practitioner at Highland Council (Highland)
Teresa Argent, Early Years Officer at Bowhouse Early Learning Centre (Falkirk)
Nikki Kirkwood, Senior Early Years officer at Easter Carmuirs School (Falkirk
Orwell’s classic novella narrowly beat A Christmas Carol and Of Mice and Men
JB Priestley’s An Inspector Calls among the most popular for young Brits
Bronte books rated highly by women, but low down the rankings for men
George Orwell’s political fable Animal Farm has been voted the nation’s favourite ever school book, in new research commissioned ahead of International Children’s Book Day 2021 today (2nd April).
The study, conducted by Oxford Home Schooling, asked 2,000 UK adults which books they most enjoyed reading when at school and Animal Farm was selected by a quarter (25%) of respondents.
The novella was followed in the rankings by Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol (21%) and John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men (19%). Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is the most popular school book written by a female author (18%), placing sixth on the overall list.
Orwell and Dickens both appear twice in the top 10, as does William Shakespeare, showing his timeless appeal to all ages. Romeo and Juliet is the UK’s favourite play by The Bard (19%), ahead of Macbeth (15%).
The UK’s top 10 favourite school books are:
Animal Farm (George Orwell)
A Christmas Carol (Charles Dickens)
Of Mice and Men (John Steinbeck)
1984 (George Orwell)
Romeo and Juliet (William Shakespeare)
To Kill a Mockingbird (Harper Lee)
Great Expectations (Charles Dickens)
Macbeth (William Shakespeare)
Jane Eyre (Charlotte Brontë)
Lord of the Flies (William Golding)
The majority of the most popular books are from the 1900s, but three 21st century works made the top 40.
John Boyne’s haunting Holocaust novel, The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, published in 2006, was the highest rated work from this millennium (30th), with The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (Mark Haddon – 2003) and Noughts and Crosses (Malorie Blackman – 2001) also featuring highly.
Men and women have significantly different tastes when it comes to books it seems, with their respective top 10 lists contrasting wildly. While Animal Farm is the favourite amongst men, A Christmas Carol tops the list for women, followed by Charlotte Brontë’s gothic romance novelJane Eyre.
The Brontë sisters are generally far more popular with female readers, with both Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights, younger sibling Emily’s sole work, rated far higher by women. Despite both featuring in the top six for women, neither appear in the top 15 for men (Wuthering Heights – 18th, Jane Eyre – 23rd).
It appears that younger readers are also turning away from Jane Eyre, as it features in the top 10 for all age groups except 18–24-year-olds. It is replaced by JB Priestley’s crime thriller An Inspector Calls, with the classic 20th century play ranking seventh for this latest generation. Of Mice and Men is the favourite among young Brits.
Greg Smith, Head of Operations at Oxford Home Schooling, said: “The books we read at school can affect our general interest in reading in later life, so it’s really important that people enjoy the novels given to them.
“Animal Farm is an incredibly powerful story and it’s not surprising to see that people remember it fondly. It also topped our rankings when we ran this study five years ago, showing that its popularity is enduring.
“However, it’s also interesting to see other works creep up towards the top of the lists. We’ll have to see whether Orwell can complete a hat-trick in years to come, or whether a new favourite will emerge!”
For more information about the research and expert advice on how to get your child to read more, both in and out of school, visit:
Scottish pupils to travel around the world in one weekwith digital events
Next week (Monday 22 March – Friday 25 March), the Scottish Friendly Children’s Book Tour will travel around the world for the very first time with its virtual Connected: Continents tour.
Pupils will join events and meet authors live from different parts of the world including Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia, North and South America.
From celebrating different cultures and languages, to exploring mythology and magic to drawing manga, the Connected: Continents tour is jam-packed with fun events for all the family.
Scottish pupils will explore the continents from their classroom or home through six different events. Schools all over the globe were invited to join the Scottish Friendly Children’s Book Tour, made possible by the virtual format.
For the first time since the tour’s inception 23 years ago, a school from Canada will tune in alongside Scottish pupils.
Connected: Continents tour schedule
From Spain, author Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara will take pupils on a whistle-stop tour of Europe to visit some of the great figures showcased in her own book series Little People, Big Dreams: including Greta Thunberg, Rudolf Nureyev and Marie Curie.
Award-winning designer, author and illustrator Ken Wilson-Max will be joined by a guest writer from Africa for a mini-festival of stories and celebration. The event will explore roots, family, equality, mythology and magic.
Joining from Dallas, Texas, American Muslim author, designer and entrepreneur Hafsah Faizal will discuss her journey to becoming a writer and the influences behind her award-winning, Arabian-inspired Sands of Arawiya duology.
Live from Australia, bestselling author Jessica Townsend will chat about her fantasy series Nevermoor – soon to be a major movie. The first book in the series was the biggest-selling Australian children’s debut since records began.
Joining from Peru, illustrator Issa Watanabe will explain her wordless picture book Migrants. Award-winning bi-lingual author and literary translator Lawrence Schimel will also take part in the event, which will be in Spanish with a translator.
A live interactive workshop with Japanese artist Chie Kutsuwada will finish the tour, bringing the work of Shakespeare alive for manga fans and Shakespeare enthusiasts alike.
The Scottish Friendly Children’s Book Tour is supported by Scottish Friendly and organised by Scottish Book Trust, the national charity transforming lives through reading and writing.
Fun, educational video content and live events for classroom and home learning have to-date reached an audience of over 100,000 through Scottish Book Trust’s Home Activities Hub, On Demand library and social media content.
Events from the Connected: Continents tour will be available to watch later via Scottish Book Trust’s On Demand Library.
Marc Lambert, CEO of Scottish Book Trust said:“For the very first time, the Scottish Friendly Children’s Book Tour will transport pupils from Africa to Australia.
“The magic of an author’s visit has a lasting impact on young people’s learning, and the diverse and exciting Connected: Continents events will inspire students with stories from other cultures and languages.”
Carol Ann Neil, Primary Teacher at Bridge of Allan Primary School said:“It’s amazing how one book can inspire so much. The Scottish Friendly Children’s Book Tour was fantastic and helped support remote learning for Primary 6 pupils at Bridge of Allan Primary School.
Thank you so much to Scottish Book Trust for the wonderful opportunity.”
World Poetry Day is the ideal opportunity to share poems with your youngsters. Playful, silly, beautiful, fun… there’s something for everyone. Former primary school teacher Becky Cranham of education resources experts PlanBee shows you how
A Lockdown Haiku Another zoom call Daily freezing groundhog walk Will this ever end?
Writing poetry has always been a way for people to express difficult feelings and emotions. There is something so cathartic about immortalising thoughts on paper, particularly if those words are arranged in a precise and pleasing arrangement of sounds and syllables.
Yet as technology advances and people find other outlets for self-expression, poetry is becoming less and less mainstream. For those for whom poetry is unfamiliar, it can seem a daunting and curious art form, especially when it comes to introducing children. Where do you start? What forms should you teach? How do you condense something so vast into manageable and understandable chunks?
Part of the joy of poetry, however, is its simplicity. It doesn’t have to be ‘The Iliad’; it can be playful and silly and freeing. It can also be tender or thoughtful, pensive or angry, hopeful or despairing. Poetry can be anything you want it to be, and that is its unique beauty.
World Poetry Day is the perfect excuse to use poetry to help children (and adults) through these tough times.
So how exactly can poetry help? First and foremost, poetry is fun! Search ‘nonsense poetry’ online with your children and you will find a plethora of hilariously stupid poems to make your children laugh. Or look up the poems of the nonsense king, Spike Milligan, for some classic nonsense such as ‘On the ning nang nong’ or ‘Land of the Bumbly Boo’.
Funny poems, whether nonsense or not, are fantastic at any time of day to lighten the mood – and we could all use a bit more of that at the moment!
Poetry is also a great way of encouraging children to explore their feelings. Children have had to deal with so much this past year: a scary virus, school closures, virtual learning, missing family and friends, as well as the loss of loved ones for many.
Poetry gives children the chance to reflect on how they feel and give a voice to their feelings. Encouraging your children to write a poem, carefully choosing which words they want to include, can help them process difficult emotions.
It also affords children the chance to look to the future and the (hopefully) brighter days ahead. We all need a big old dose of hope right now and poetry can help children express what they are looking forward to about the future, helping them recognise that current events are just temporary and that life will look different soon.
Which is why at PlanBee, we’re running a special poetry competition this year.
Write a poem entitled ‘When Lockdown is Over’ for your chance to win a beautiful poetry anthology
In honour of World Poetry Day 2021, PlanBee is running a competition for children aged five to 11 to encourage them to engage with poetry. All they need to do is write a poem about what they will do, or are hoping for, when lockdown ends, called ‘When Lockdown is Over’.
The poem can be in any form at all but some ideas and templates are included in this free download to get them started.
128 schools across 32 local authorities in Scotland have joined the virtual Scottish Friendly Children’s Book Tours since the start of lockdown last year, with educational video content viewed over 100,000 times.
The ‘Connected’: Space tour recently hosted five days of ‘out-of-this-world’ virtual events, telling the stories of space adventures through science fact and fiction.
The digital events took place online from Monday 22 February to Friday 26 February, with schools from Aberdeen, Argyll & Bute, East Renfrewshire, Edinburgh, Falkirk, Glasgow, Moray, Scottish Borders, South Ayrshire and West Lothian signed up for events, reaching over 750 pupils.
The events are available to watch on demand via Scottish Book Trust’s website.
The Scottish Friendly Children’s Book Tour is supported by Scottish Friendly and organised by Scottish Book Trust, the national charity transforming lives through reading and writing.
For over 20 years the tour has visited schools the length and breadth of the UK, bringing the world’s best authors directly in front of children in classrooms. Since covid-19 the tour has adapted to the restrictions and changing landscape and has gone fully digital to continue vital work in supporting children, reaching around 8,000 P1-S3 pupils.
Fun, educational video content and live events for home learning and in the classroom have to-date reached an audience of over 100,000 through the Scottish Book Trust social media, Home Activities Hub and On Demand library.
Carol Ann Neil, teacher at Bridge of Allan Primary School said:“Having the opportunity to engage with the Space Explorers event reignited the children’s enthusiasm for reading as individuals and as a class team to share stories during the pandemic.”
The Connected: Space tour featured a diverse mix of book events, including: illustrator and graphic designer Matt Carr, creator of Rocketmole; author and astronomer Dr Sheila Kanani and author Libby Jackson, one of the UK’s foremost space experts and author of book Space Explorers.
P5-7 pupils had the opportunity to meet Dr Alastair Bruce, Dynamic Earth’s very own resident Astronomer. Joined by Alastair Chisholm, author of Orion Lost, pupils took the role of captain and decided the fate of their own space mission.
The previous tour, Connected: Polar, is now available to watch via Scottish Book Trust’s On Demand library hub. Events include Sarah Airreiss and British Antarctic Survey, live from the Antarctic and Shackleton’s Journey with William Grill and RRS Discovery, Dundee.
The next virtual Connected tour: Continents, will take place from Monday 22 March – Friday 25 March.
Pupils will have the chance to join events and meet authors live from different parts of the world including Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia, North and South America.
From celebrating different cultures and languages, to exploring about mythology and magic to drawing manga, the Connected: Continents, tour is jam-packed with fun events for all the family. Schools can find out more and sign up via Scottish Book Trust’s website. Events will be available to watch later via Scottish Book Trust’s On Demand Library.
Kevin Brown, Head of PR at Scottish Friendly, said:“As soon as the pandemic hit and schools were closed, our number one priority was to provide educational and exciting content to help children, teachers and parents with engaging video content that can be viewed either via live social media streams or at a time of their choosing.”
Marc Lambert, CEO of Scottish Book Trust said:“Scottish Book Trust is delighted to bring the Scottish Friendly Children’s Book Tour virtually into classrooms and homes across Scotland.
“Since the pandemic started a year ago, it has been more important than ever to provide young people with engaging and exciting content.
“The Connected tours aim to transport pupils to new worlds through author events, offering opportunities to spark their creativity and imagination. The feedback from schools and families has been fantastic, and our On Demand library allows anyone to watch the tour, at any time, and no matter their location.”
Rare Birds Book Club has offered a welcome distraction and a meaningful network for women across the world since its inception in 2017. As COVID-19 brought about the closure of businesses from independent to global, the monthly membership and digital book club saw its figures explode, with an increase in sales of over 52% during the first lockdown alone.
Twelve-months on and with three lockdowns under the country’s belt, the brand, which offers letterbox sized gifts to keep us entertained, has found itself to be one of the few winners of the pandemic.
The home of women’s fiction, Rare Birds Book Club has been a balm to combat the loneliness, anxiety and unease that Coronavirus has brought, not to mention the boredom. Showing just how much a year of being homebound has affected the nation’s shopping habits, Rare Birds announced a 255% increase when comparing January 2020 to January 2021 and an overall increase of 204% YoY. This equates to over 1,200 new monthly members across the last twelve months.
As a monthly service which delivers a surprise work of female fiction to your door, Rare Birds Book Club’s best-seller for 2020 was the pay-as-you-go option, “people love the flexibility and convenience, especially in these uncertain times” according to founder Rachel Wood.
However, that being said, last year saw over 44% of all Rare Birds purchase a 12-month membership or longer, meaning that for them the club is more than just something to keep them going during lockdown. On top of that, figures saw an almost even split, with 51% of members purchased for themselves, whilst 49% ordered as a gift for someone else.
Rachel Wood expands on why now, more than ever, people have been reawakening their love of reading: “Our mission at Rare Birds is simple: to make reading fun again. This year, nothing has seemed particularly fun and with fear at an all-time high and an inability to see our loved ones, a little escapism has been sorely needed.
“From the excitement of receiving a surprise book to the ability to gift those we miss, and have it fit neatly through their letterbox, we have been doing what we can to offer a touch of light relief in this difficult year.”
With a plan that is sure to set the literary world on fire, Rare Birds predicts it will double its members in 2021, finishing out the year with even more likeminded bibliophiles.
The brand will also see a number of big releases including a new line of gifting and a new way of selling in the second half of the year.
