Books

Typical questions

Considerations

There are hundreds, if not thousands, of books suitable for children on all subjects, and the quality and standard these days is, in the main, exceptional. There are umpteen books suggested in this guide, but there are a dozen more for every subject that would be equally suitable. With this in mind, it is worth mentioning that there are publishers who specialize in producing books that support and complement the curriculum and for that reason are worth looking at. However, bear in mind that the two listed below are only two examples and it is worth checking other publishing houses. To find out contact details and web addresses use Directory of UK and Irish Publishers, joint publication by the Booksellers Association and Nielsen Book Data.

Specific children's publishers

Evans Publishing Group

www.evansbooks.co.uk

Specializes in books and resources for all areas of the national curriculum, from Foundation Stage to KS4. It has some excellent titles for all ages, categorized by curriculum subject and age. If you're in need of ideas for books to buy for school or home it's well worth looking at the website.

Lerner Books

www.lernerbooks.co.uk

Books for schools and libraries. Each title is reviewed by teams of teachers and libraries in the UK, who verify that each book is relevant to the national curriculum and the Scottish guidelines. Titles cover Literacy, Science, Art, History, Design and Technology and Geography.

Dictionaries

Typical questions

Considerations

Dictionaries are fantastic tools for those who can spell and read fluently, but can offer little help to the ‘bad speller’, dyslexic or struggling child. With this in mind, the use of dictionaries to find out the meanings of words or to check the spelling of a word should be a shared task. It would be advisable to have age-appropriate dictionaries available, as these are less daunting in appearance. There are also many available with illustrations.