Bob Cox has had the pleasure of hearing from many teachers about their pupils’ delight in discovering famous writers, their growing relish for learning about a variety of literary styles, and their increasing access to literature and cultural capital.
The ‘Opening Doors’ series has been supporting teachers’ passion for quality texts (and winning awards) since 2014. Both at home and abroad these extraordinary books have been signposting richer approaches to English in schools keen to exploit the learning opportunities afforded by a depth of challenge for all learners. Opening Doors has two age groups available: Opening Doors To A Richer English Curriculum For Ages 6 to 9 and Opening Doors To A Richer English Curriculum For Ages 10 To 13
I had a chance to interview him to learn more.
Why is it important to use quality texts in the primary classroom?åΩ
‘Quality’ can be hard to define but we work with schools in the UK and abroad with the notion that texts which offer greater scope for learning, deeper ideas to explore and richer, new vocabulary to encounter give opportunities to relish challenge and ask so many questions! Access is key, so both teachers and parents using the ‘Opening Doors’ series can enable younger readers and those who may have a high or low reading age to be part of an exciting journey. We show in the books how access can be facilitated by illustrations, slivers of text, writing taster drafts, using music and drama and many other strategies. So, quality texts become a ‘norm’ in the classroom because the beauty of the ideas in the text draw in young pupils’ imaginations and then they can be taught more about style, narrative and famous texts! An example would be ‘A Home for David’ in ‘Opening Doors to a Richer English Curriculum ages10-13’ where the concept of a bedroom within a boat moored on the sand builds the interest into learning about Dickensian descriptions in a famous book: ‘David Copperfield’.
There is much debate about how to develop comprehension skills, and we suggest many strategies, but there is much agreement about the overall importance of general knowledge and reading, reading, reading.
How can literature be used to inspire students?
We always ensure we link a core unit (often from a famous writer in the past) to recommended whole text reading from a range of genres (including writers from the present). ‘Opening Doors’ is used in thousands of schools and all the messages we get tell us the same story: that pupils love challenge, and they love quirky and famous tales from literature because they stimulate rich imaginative pathways and some topclass writing. Please see here one of our publishers’ pupils’ work websites and other links:
https://www.crownhouse.co.uk/publications/opening-doors-to-quality-writing1
www.searchingforexcellence.co.uk
https://www.amazon.com/Bob-Cox/e/B00GNBMNEG%3Fref=dbs_a_mng_rwt_scns_share
It’s best to introduce literature as early as possible but in small steps. An obvious example is the journey of appreciation of a Shakespeare text. Illustrative versions with prose re-writes or brief textual examples can give way to the study of part of a scene, a whole scene and then a full play when they are older. We are giving the same kinds of tips and ideas about introducing pupils to a range of literature in small chunks which fire the imagination but link them with full texts of today. I love one of our reviewers’ comments that the books ‘provide a cornucopia of poetry and prose as a starting point for truly opening pupils’ minds’. With great introductions, which child could fail to ask questions about Dionne Brand’s Caribbean Wind or Andri Snaer Magnason’s ‘Blue Planet’ where children rule happily – until an adult arrives! What about Washington Irving’s spirits on the mountain in ‘Rip Van Winkle’, Amy March facing up to punishment in ‘Little Women’ or J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan searching for his stolen shadow in Edwardian England? The knowledge and depth of cultural capital to be gained is huge and our texts are chosen as examples of great writing from many countries. Across the five books, there are 80 units.
What can teachers do to nurture a love of reading while building a rich English curriculum?
Our idea of linking in whole text reading as part of the curriculum has boosted quality reading hugely. Some schools plan for this and find that placing the texts on the table and insisting on some reading time in school has made a bridge to more reading at home. Choice is important so we include a range of titles in the books and go from picturebooks to children’s literature to famous literature. Pupils’ own independent reading for pleasure goes hand in hand too – research from the Open University/United Kingdom Literacy Association has shown how important that is - with library time and help from the experts to find the right book. It all starts with teacher expectation. Challenging texts and new vocabulary can and should be accessed through a quality reading culture which is planned into the curriculum not left as an off-shoot or occasional extension. Love of great writers gained early will never be lost and will support progress across the curriculum and be a love for life. Classroom strategies have also included teachers showing pictures of themselves reading, perhaps on holiday; all members of the school community giving assemblies about favourite books; a parents reading area in the foyer where volunteers read to children; silent reading clubs after school; post-it notes pinned up and updated every day from pupils about where they are up to with their reading for pleasure; much talk in class about favourite characters, disappointing moments or great beginnings.
Let the words and responses wander round every classroom and all the displays too to create a huge range of exploration! Within all this, teachers should not be afraid to show their expertise and keep nudging their pupils on to new discoveries.
Do you know what we have discovered? They absolutely love hearing about famous writers and their lives. It’s inspiring. I told a class how three sisters grew up in Victorian times in a parsonage on the moors in Yorkshire, wrote stories to each other in tiny books as children and got published using pseudonyms as no-one would have looked at scripts by women: yet Charlotte, Emily and Anne Bronte have become famous all around the world and the parsonage in Haworth is a shrine to the power of their writing! The class listened in total awe -try it! What you don’t know, our books will help you find out. That’s the idea. We use texts from writers who are not so well known as well and that’s helping teachers broaden their repertoire of knowledge.
We find that teachers learn more when using quality texts and it makes for continuous professional development every day. Please read my blog and others (via ‘blog’ on my website) by schools using ‘Opening Doors’:
https://searchingforexcellence.co.uk/2019/01/17/a-daily-diet-of-cpd/
Does poetry have a place in the primary grades?
Yes, poetry is essential. Through poetry so much can be learnt about use of words, the vital placing of punctuation to affect meaning, creative range and the joy of wonderful narratives and clever, profound moments. Reciting poetry can deepen appreciation and understanding. We have 6 year olds loving the wordplay and images of Christina Rossetti or James Reeves. Try ‘Mini-Beast Magic’ in the new 6-9 book. Emily Dickinson’s personification of March ‘ Oh March come right upstairs with me’ introduces pupils to so many ways of bringing nature alive. It encourages exploration, experimentation and gives the chance for explicit teaching in a creative context: the concept of personification has been learnt for the first time and can be applied again! Poetry should be part of the linked reading curriculum I explained earlier and then pupils get used to encountering different forms and styles and structures.
Flood them with poetry! Teach them aspects of poetry through the wonder of the key images and ideas. Keep reciting, performing and questioning!
Bob Cox is an independent educational consultant, writer and teacher coach who works nationally and internationally to support
outstanding learning.
Leah Crawford spent 15 years as a local authority English inspector/adviser, working across both the primary and secondary phases, and now leads the Thinktalk education consultancy.
Having spent over a decade working in education – as a teacher, a deputy head and an advisor – Verity Jones is now a senior lecturer at the University of the West of England, Bristol.
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