Junior Education PLUS October 08.

The latest edition of this magazine for teaching 7-11s has a few literature related articles. On page 11, you can find ideas for the National Year of Reading's October theme, Word of mouth. Huw Thomas writes about literary activities using Tom Becker's Darkside and its follow-ups, Lifeblood and Nightrap, on pages 20-21. These books are set in a mysterious other world hidden within contemporary London where the main characters, Ricky and Jonathan, encounter all sorts of devilsome villains. Finally, the review section on pages 58-59 features a selection of spooky reads.

National Year of Reading - October

The October theme for the National Year of Reading is Word of Mouth, which is a celebration of oral storytelling traditions and reading aloud. I've updated the Jordanhill page to reflect this, with information on resources such as giant picture books and storysacks.

Eoin Colfer

There was a profile of Eoin Colfer in yesterday's Observer, to go with the announcement that he is about to write a new volume of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - seven years after the death of its creator, Douglas Adams. Check also the Jordanhill catalogue to find our holdings of Artemis Fowl and other Colfer books.

3 new journals.

The following are now in the library:

Nursery Education PLUS, October 2008. Ideas for working with nursery age children - literature based ones include how to get the most from Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler's new book Stick Man, and an article on October's National Year of Reading theme, Word of Mouth. There's also a review section of books on the weather.

Child Education PLUS, October 2008. Similar, but for ages 4-7. Literature-related features are on Lauren Child's Spells and Mick Inkpen's Penguin Small. The book reviews feature Christmas.

Books for Keeps, September 2008. Mick Inkpen features again, as do Anne Cassidy and Peter Dickinson. Julia Jarman writes on translating story into film and Harriet Dombey explains the thinking behind Maryanne Wolf's Proust and the squid: the story and science of the reading brain. (Harper, 2007). (At Jordanhill, this is shelved at D612.82 WOL). As always, there are several pages of reviews for all ages from pre-school to young adult. And don't forget, Books for Keeps has its own website.

Age-ranging - part 3.

This argument simmers on. Authors campaigning against age ranging on children's books have found an unexpected ally in children's minister Ed Balls, who has raised doubts about the scheme and advised parents to seek expert guidance instead of relying on cover labels. Read about in in the article in the Guardian on September 12th. For parts 1 and 2 of this saga, click on the age-ranging label below.

Children's poetry competition

Children's Poetry Bookshelf is running a competition for children aged 7-11. Old Possum’s Children’s Poetry Competition, with Michael Rosen chairing the judges, requires them to write a poem about "Work". This ties in with the theme for National Poetry Day 2008, which is on Thursday, October 9th. Entry forms can be downloaded from the Poetry Bookshelf site, as can materials for teachers to help children write their poems.

And of course, don't forget our own Jordanhill poetry page.

Roald Dahl Funny Prize

The Roald Dahl Funny Prize, is the first award to honour books that make us giggle. The shortlist was announced on the 8 September and winners will be announced on November 13th. There's also a related article by Nicolette Jones on humorous writing for children in the Telegraph of 6th September - Why making children laugh is a serious business.

National Year of Reading Poem

The National Year of Reading now has its own poem, Words are ours, written by the Children's Laureate, Michael Rosen. This is also printed at the end of a recent interview with Rosen in the Independent, "Give children books not SATS", in which he deplores the effects of testing on children's enthusiam for books.

Junior Education PLUS

The September 2008 edition of Junior Education PLUS is now in the library. Like its sister publication, Child Education PLUS, which I wrote about last month, it has lots of useful teaching ideas, this time covering ages 7-11. Those with literature connections include suggestions for the National Year of Reading's September theme, You are what you read (p. 11), a back-to-school poem (p. 13) and an article about Chris Riddell's Ottoline series (pp. 21-22). Ottoline is a quirky girl detective who solves crimes with her hairy companion, Mr Munroe. Ottoline and the yellow cat is filled with little games and diagrams that children will love - it's already in the library, and the follow-up, Ottoline goes to school, has been ordered.