Children have opinions!

What is the best way to ensure that KS2 understand that there are many different types of fiction?

There is a very old and rather sad joke about a man who, when asked about his taste in literature, said that he didn’t read books.  

Seeing the look of dismay on his questioner’s face the man then explained that he had indeed read a novel once, but hadn’t liked it, so naturally had not gone any further with that particular activity.

Apocryphal though that snippet undoubtedly is, it does remind us that if children don’t get the opportunity to read different types of fiction when young, they may find it hard to gain an understanding of the breadth of subjects and styles that the world of fiction offers.

Indeed, the use of the word “naturally” in that report (having not enjoyed the first book he looked at, he “naturally” had not read any more) does remind us that given that the number of works of fiction in some houses can be vanishingly small, the prejudice against the novel can be built into many children’s upbringing.

Which is why Developing Reading Comprehension Skills Years 5-6: Contemporary Children’s Literature contains extracts from a dozen very varied modern children’s stories each accompanied by eight sets of questions based on the Key Stage 2 (KS2) Reading Content Domains which will act as preparation for the KS2 SATs.

At the same time, they will show those children who are brought up in houses that lack a variety of books, just how varied the world of literary fiction is.

In this way the children will get the chance to appreciate the variety there is within literature, while learning exactly how writers work in developing their stories and their characters.

At the same time, the children will come to understand how writers use vocabulary and writing styles in different ways.  Through this they will inevitably be better prepared for the moment when they start to choose books of their own to read.

The book is available both in printed and e-book formats and you can read more about it, and see extracts from the book on our website.

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