Peter Harris, Deborah Allwright (illus)
Egmont
Age 3-5

While Tom is sleeping some strange shadowy shapes enter his street. They are girl pirates planning to steal the front of his house as a disguise for their ship. The pirates agree to take Tom on a night time adventure with them. They head for an island where they meet grown up pirates and find a treasure chest.

An unusual, imaginative and beautifully illustrated story in which grown up pirates afraid of the girl pirates who steal their treasure. There are lots of questions to ponder in this night time adventure; was it all a dream?

 

Share the story

Read aloud
Before starting to read the book, look at the cover and end papers together, what can you tell about the story?

Read the opening aloud in a whisper and pause at ‘Tom was a little boy about to have an adventure’…. What sort of adventure might he have?

Read the story aloud pausing to talk about what happens and the illustrations as you do.

Join in
When you read the book again children can join in with the repeated phrases eg ‘down, down, down…’ ‘Tom was…’ and what some of the characters said.

Talk about the story

There are lots of questions included in the story, talk about them as you share the book; including the last one ‘No one would ever find out….would they? ’What do children think?

Did anything surprise children about the story?

What might mum or dad say if Tom tells them about the night pirates?

Watch the story

LadyScarlie

Things to make and do

Role play

Children could pretend to be Tom in the crow’s nest illustrated on the cover, perhaps using a large plastic storage container or linen basket to sit in. A cardboard tube could be the telescope. You might like to make a pirate flag too (see below).

Together, role play a conversation between one of the girl pirates and Tom on the ship. What orders might Tom be given?

Make a map and tell the story
Using a large sheet of paper children could draw their own map to show the places in the story and Tom’s adventure with the girl pirates. Children could then use their map to help them tell you the story.

Write a pirate log
Print off the pirate log template. Children can write Tom’s ‘log’ or diary for the night in the story.

Find out more

Find out about illustrator Deborah Allwright here

Sing a pirate song here

Make a pirate flag here

 

Buy online

 

Neil Gaiman, illus. Chris Riddell
Bloomsbury
Age 5-9 years

Imagine if mum and dad go out for the evening and choose a pirate cook as a babysitter? In Pirate Stew we find out exactly what might happen. This is a splendid, rollicking rhyme of a picture book guaranteed to delight young readers. The illustrations are just fabulous, packed with comic characters, lots of detail and pirate themed fun. Look out for the many references drawn from classic pirate books such as Treasure Island and Peter Pan.

Author Neil Gaiman introduces his book and reads aloud from it here:

 

Share the story

Join in
When children are familiar with the story they will enjoy joining in (loudly!) with the chorus and might enjoy taking turns for sections such as the wonderful list of ingredients in the pirate stew.

Talk about the story

• Think together about how the children feel at different points in the story

• What would it be like having a pirate as a babysitter or even having pirates as parents? Share your thoughts

• Share ideas for what you would put into a pirate stew

• Were there any words or ideas children didn’t understand, talk about these together. For example, there are references to other stories eg Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stephenson (Fifteen men upon a dead man’s chest, Yo Ho Ho and a bottle of rum) and a tongue twister ‘She sells seashells on the sea shore. The shells she sells are seashells I’m sure.’

  Joe tells us about reading Pirate Stew with Jacob and Luke

  Joe tells us about sharing Pirate Stew with his sons Jacob (aged 5) and Luke (age 9).
  Jacob commented ‘I like all the pirates, and the end is very good, I think all my friends would like it as well‘, while Luke said ‘The book is horrifyingly hilarious’.

  Joe says: 
  'We all enjoyed reading this book together. It has great pictures and is a fun, rhyming story that you can read many times. I’m quite keen on the idea of getting pirates to babysit next time we go out for the evening, but Jacob is not so sure. We won’t spoil the end but Jacob decided he would prefer me not to eat the stew!

  Jacob enjoyed creating his own version of the cover – he loves drawing and painting and I was amazed at the amount of detail he noticed.'

Things to make and do

Dress up as a pirate
Collect clothing to help you dress up as a pirate – eg scarves, hats, belts, boots, loose shirt or stripey t-shirt. You could look back at the illustrations for inspiration. Add accessories such as a cardboard pirate cutlass from cardboard.

Make pirate stew
Find a big container to make an imaginary pirate stew. You could use an extra large saucepan, a bucket or box. Collect things to go in your pirate stew – this could include some real ingredients and some much more imaginative or sillier ones too.

Alternatively you could also make a real stew Pirate Stew Recipe – Food.com and give the ingredients alternative names as you mix them in. What ingredient might mermaid’s tears be for example?

Write a recipe
Write your own recipe for pirate stew – you could include some things from the story and add more of your own and illustrate your recipe.

Draw your own pirate crew
If you were a pirate captain who would you have in your crew? Children could draw their crew on a large piece of paper giving each of them a name and a specific job on the pirate ship.

Make a pirate treasure map
Pirates traditionally are very keen to search for buried treasure. You could stain a piece of paper with coffee or tea to ‘age’ a piece of paper and when it is dry draw a map of a treasure island. It would be fun to talk together about what to include on the island. Don’t forget the X marks the spot.

Find out more

Find out more about Pirates
The National Maritime Museum in Greenwich has a fantastic selection of resources about pirates Stories from the Sea: Pirates resource | Royal Museums Greenwich (rmg.co.uk)

Pirate Facts For Kids | What Are Pirates? | DK Find Out

For adults here is some Information about modern piracy 

Read more books by Neil Gaiman Neil Gaiman  |  Neil’s Work | Books

Titles also illustrated by Chris Riddell include:

Fortunately, the Milk

The Sleeper and the Spindle

Art Matters  

 

Other books include:

Wolves in the Walls

Coraline

 

Read more books by author/illustrator Chris Riddell:

Ottoline and the Yellow Cat

Goth Girl

 

Other books illustrated by Chris Riddell include

A Great Big Cuddle and Honey for Me Honey for You with Michael Rosen.

Rob Biddulph
HarperCollins
Age 3-7 years

Penguin Blue receives a delivery, a pirate costume. He decides to set sail on a swashbuckling adventure game with his penguin friends, Clive the polar bear and Wilbur the Seal. After sailing the seven seas their ship is ripped by a passing swordfish, they find a sunken wreck, and meet a shipwrecked captain on a desert island, Captain Walker Plank. Will they find any treasure and how will they get safely home?

With wonderfully detailed illustrations, appealing penguin pirates, an exciting theme and a rhyming text this book is great fun to share. It will inspire lots of pirate storyplay and may also lead to some serious thinking about what we treasure the most.

Share the story

Before reading the story look at the title page together. Share ideas about who might live in the house and what might be in the parcel.

Read the story aloud
Read to your child pausing to talk about what is happening in the story or the pictures when children

Join in
Children could join in with the pirate cries of ‘Thar she blows!’ and ‘Yo Ho Ho!’ For children beginning to read you could point to the words as you read them.

Talk about the story
You and your child will find lots to talk about in the detailed illustrations, here are some suggestions:

Talk about what children notice in the sunken world under the sea

Count the seven seas on the double page map and trace the route of Penguin Blue’s ship.

As you turn the pages, look out for the treasure map, the ‘X’ marks the spot on the Desert Island and see if you can spot what the naughty parrot does, don’t miss the final illustration at the back of the book!

What games are Penguin Blue’s friends playing on the ship at the end of the story?

Talk about anything that puzzles children, for example the end of the story and finding ‘treasure worth much more than gold.’

 

Things to make and do

Dress up as a pirate
Dress up as a pirate, you don’t have to have a pirate outfit an improvised costume is just as much fun. Make a pirate hat using Rob Biddulph’s template  or from folded newspaper

Draw a treasure map
Children could draw their own treasure map, not forgetting to mark the treasure with an X of course! Older children might enjoy staining the paper with tea or coffee first to make it look really old. They could roll the map and tie it together with a ribbon or string.

Act the story
Collecting together some toys as a pirate crew children could set sail on a pirate adventure, wearing their costume in a make believe boat out of a paddling pool, large storage box or baby bath. They can take their treasure map and other props perhaps a spyglass.

Find out more

Read another story by Rob Biddulph:

Blown Away

Grrrrr!

Odd Dog Out

Watch Rob Biddulph draw a pirate penguin

Find out more about floating and sinking

 

Buy Sunk here

 

Neil Gaiman, Chris Riddell (illus)
Bloomsbury

Age 7-9

When mum goes off to a conference dad is in charge with a list of instructions. But he quickly forgets the one about getting some milk. Next morning there is no milk for cereal or tea so dad goes off to buy some. When he eventually returns he recounts a series of amazing adventures to explain why he was so long, with aliens who want to take over (and redecorate!) earth, pirates, dinosaurs, volcanoes and a time machine. Fortunately he brings back the milk! But why don’t the children believe his story?

An amusing and surreal adventure in which tables are turned as dad is the one making up excuses for his lateness, the wonderfully detailed illustrations and comic strip sequences add to the humour.

Watch a trailer here

 

Talk about the book

Look at the illustrations at the back of the book, talk together about the characters and share your favourites.

Talk about why the children don’t believe dad’s story, would you have believed it?

What might mum say when she comes home? What would the children tell her about what happened?

 

Things to make and do

• Take turns to retell the main events in the story with ‘fortunately, unfortunately’ statements, eg: Unfortunately Dad was picked up by aliens, fortunately he escaped through a space-time continuum.

• Role play a conversation between mum and dad or mum and one of the children after she comes home.

• Using a large piece of paper draw and annotate a story map to show all the different places Dad finds himself and the different characters Dad encounters.

 

Find out more

Find out more about Neil Gaiman

Visit Neil Gaiman’s website for young readers. This contains extras, a discussion guide and downloadables

Other titles include:

The Graveyard Book

The day I swapped my Dad for two goldfish

Wolves in the Walls

Find out more about Chris Riddell Children’s Laureate 2015-17

Read more books by Chris Riddell. He has illustrated many books for other writers. Books he has written and illustrated include:

Goth Girl and the Ghost of a Mouse

Ottoline and the Yellow Cat

Buy Fortunately the Milk

 

 

Ranjit Singh, Mehrdokht Amini, illustrator
Lantana
Age 3-7

For Nimesh every day is an adventure. At school his classroom is a dragon’s cave and the corridor a shark infested sea. On the way home he is not walking along a busy street but on a sleigh ride at the North Pole. As Nimesh travels from one adventure to another, pages alternate between real life and the imaginary and young readers can spot the clues for the next adventure in the vibrant illustrations.

This is an exciting book to spark the imagination with lots of opportunities for creative storytelling – maybe you are not just walking in the park maybe you are in … a rainforest! The book takes the form of a conversation between Nimesh and an unseen narrator who meets him at school and follow him on his journey home making this a great book for taking turns when reading together once children are familiar with the story.

Take a peek inside on the publisher’s website 

Watch the story being told by Niall from Discover Story Centre, Stratford

Share the story

Read aloud
Before starting to read the story talk about the cover and first end papers. What can you see, what might happen in this story?

Read the book aloud to your child allowing time to talk about the story and pictures as you do. Did you both spot the clues for the next adventure? (eg the ski shop before the North Pole spread) If not go back and look for them together.

Join in
Read the story as a double act with one of you being the narrator and one being Nimesh.

Talk about the story
Choose the adventures which most interest your child to talk about , for example:

• Did Nimesh beat the pirates?

• Where might he be going on the tiger?

• What might happen if the dragon wakes up?

• Spot the clues to each adventure eg dragon book, shark poster, ski shop, pirate cake

• Would your child like Nimesh to have had adventures at home – if so what might they be?

Things to make and do

Play the story
When you are out and about imagine your own adventures together eg:

• We are not pushing a trolley at the supermarket we are pushing…… a barrow full of treasure!

• We are not swimming in the pool we are ……..deep sea divers.

• We are not looking at animals at the zoo …….. we are wild life photographers in a safari park

Be a storyteller
Choose one scene from the story and make up a story about it together.

Make a new scene for the story
Fold a piece of paper of A4 paper in two or fold both edges to the centre as if making a double door or shutters.   Children can draw another scene for the story. On the outside an everyday scene of Nimesh inside his house, at the swimming pool or supermarket and inside draw his imaginary adventure.

Find out more

Find out about famous adventurers here

 Children might like to choose an explorer that interests them and make a poster or factfile about him or her.

Discover Story Centre have a worksheet based on Nimesh the Adventurer with suggestions to help you become a story teller too

 

 

 

Here’s a complete list of all our book activity pages – click on the link and it will take you to the activity page

V = Video
AB = Activity Book

A

Aaaarrgghh Spider Lydia Monks  V

The Acorn Edward Gibbs       

Albert Talbot Master of Disguise Ben Manley, illus. Aurélie Guillerey   V

Alfie Gets in first Shirley Hughes  V      

Almost Anything  Sophy Henn                

The Animal Boogie Debbie Harter  V        

The Astounding Broccoli Boy Frank Cottrell Boyce, illus. Steve Lenton   AB 

Avocado Baby John Burningham  

B

The Bad Bunnies Magic Show Mini Grey

Banana! Ed Vere  V 

Bear and Bird Jarvis V

The Bear and the Piano David Litchfield  V

Bear Shaped Dawn Coulter-Cruttenden   V

Beetle Boy  MG Leonard  V  AB             

Be Brave Little Penguin Giles Andrae, illus. Guy Parker Rees

Beegu  Alexis Deacon             

Betty goes Bananas  Steve Antony  V   

Big Green Crocodile  Jane Newberry, illus. Carolina Rabei  V

A Big Mooncake for Little Star Grace Lin V

The BFG Roald Dahl    AB               

Billy and the Beast Nadia Shireen  V           

Billy’s Bucket  Kes Gray, llus Garry Parsons  V

Biscuit Bear Mini Grey  V                 

A Bit Lost Chris Haughton   V        

Black Cat White Cat Silvia Borando            

Blue Chameleon Emily Gravett    

Bog Baby   Jeanne Willis, ill. Gwen Millward

Boot: Small Robot Big Adventure Shane Hegarty   AB       

Boundless Sky Amanda Addison, illus. Manuela Adreani

The Boy at the Back of the Class Onjali Rauf, illus. Pippa Curnick   AB

The Boy who Climbed into the Moon David Almond    AB

The Boy who Sailed the World Julia Green, illus. Alex Latimer

Brown Bear Brown Bear, What Do You See?   Bill Martin Jnr, illus Eric Carle

Buckle and Squash and the Monstrous Moat Dragon Sarah Courtauld

Burglar Bill  Allan Ahlberg, illus  Janet Ahlberg  V

C

Car, Car, Truck, Jeep  Katrina Charman, illus. Nick Sharratt  V

Can I Sit in the Middle Susanne Strasser V

Charlotte’s Web EB White  V    AB                

The Chinese Emperor New Clothes  Ying Yang Competine, illus David Roberts  V   AB

Chocolate cake Michael Rosen, illus Kevin Waldron  V

The Christmas Eve Tree Delia Huddy,  illus Emily Sutton  

Cinderella of the Nile Beverley Naidoo  V   AB

Clean up!  Nathan Bryon, illus. Dapo Adeola

Clever Polly & the Stupid Wolf  Catherine Storr   

The Comet Joe Todd Stanton

The Cooking Club Detectives  Ewa Jozefkowicz

Coyote’s Soundbite – a poem for our planet  John Agard, illus. Piet Grobler    AB

The Crocodile who didn’t like water Gemma Merino   V     

D

The Darkest Dark Chris Hadfield, illus The Fan Brothers  V

The Dawn Chorus Suzanne Barton

Dear Dinosaur Chae Strathie, Nicola O’Byrne

Dear Zoo Rod Campbell             

Dig dig digging Margaret Mayo, illus Alex Ayliffe  V

Diggersaurs Michael Whaite  V         

Dinosaur chase Benedict Blathwayt    

Dinosaur roar Paul Strickland, illus Henrietta Strickland

Dinosaurs and all that rubbish  Michael Foreman  V     

Do not enter the monster zoo Amy Sparkes, illus Sara Ogilvie

Don’t worry little crab  Chris Haughton

A Dog So Small Philippa Pearce   V        

Dogger Shirley Hughes  V   

A Dollop of Ghee and a Drop of Wisdom   Chitra Soundar, illus. Uma Krishnaswamy V

Down by the station Jess Stockham

The Dragon in the Library, Louie Stowell

Dragon Mountain  Katie and Kevin Tsang  V   AB

The Drum  Ken Wilson Max, illus Catell Ronca   V

Dylan’s amazing dinosaurs EJ Harper, illus Dan Taylor

E

Each Peach Pear Plum  Allan Ahlberg, illus Janet Ahlberg   V

The Elephants umbrella Laleh Jaffari,  illus Ali Khodai    V

Eliot Midnight Superhero Anne Cottringer, illus Alex T Smith

Elmer David McKee  V

Eloise Undercover Sarah Baker    AB        

The Everywhere Bear Julia Donaldson, illus Rebecca Cobb

The Explorer  Katherine Rundell   AB   

The Extraordinary Gardener Sam Boughton   V  

Everybody’s Welcome Patricia Hegarty, illus Greg Abbott

F

Fair Shares Pippa Goodhart, illus Anna Doherty

Farmer Duck Martin Waddell, illus Helen Oxenbury

The Fastest Tortoise in Town Howard Calvert, ill. Karen Obuhanych

Fire Fox  Alexandra Page, illus. Stef Murphy   V

The Firework Maker’s Daughter  Philip Pullman   AB

Five little men in a flying saucer Dan Crisp    V               

Five Minutes Peace Jill Murphy                 

Flora and Ulysses, the illuminated adventures Kate Camillo     V   AB

Flooded Mariajo Ilustrajo V

The Forgettery Rachel Ip, ill. Laura Hughes   

Fortunately the Milk Neil Gaiman, illus Chris Riddell

Frindleswylde, Natalia and Lauren O’Hara

Gaspard the Fox  Zeb Soanes, illus. James Mayhew

G

Gerald the lion Jessica Souhami          

The Ghost train Allan Ahlberg, illus Andre Amstutz   V

Gigantic Rob Biddulph V

The Gigantic Turnip Alexsei Tolstoy, illus Naimh Sharkey  V

Giraffes Can’t Dance  Giles Andreae, Guy Parker Rees    V 

The Girl and the dinosaur Hollie Hughes, illus Sarah Massini  

Gloria’s Porridge  Elizabeth Laird, illus. Toby Newsome

The Glassmaker’s Daughter Diane Hofmeyr, Illus Jane Reay  V

Goodbye Grandma Melanie Walsh           

Goodnight Spaceman Michelle Robinson, illus Nick East   V

Grace and Family  Mary Hoffman, illus Caroline Binch   V

Granpa John Burningham   V    

A Great Big Cuddle Michael Rosen, illus Chris Riddell   V

Grobblechops Elizabeth Laird, illlus Jenny Lucander   V

The Gruffalo  Julia Donaldson, illus Axel Scheffler

Grumpy Frog  Ed Vere    V       

H

   

The Hairy toe Daniel Postgate   V

Handas surprise Eileen Browne  V         

Hairy MacLary from Donaldson’s Dairy, Lynley Dodd  V

Harry and the bucket of dinosaurs Ian WhyBrow, illus Adrian Reynolds

Have you seen Elephant David Barrow V

Here come the aliens Colin McNaughton   

The Highwayman Alfred Noyes   V   AB

The Highway Rat  Julia Donaldson, illus Axel Scheffler   V

Honey biscuits  Meredith Hooper, illus Alison Bartlett

Hooray for Fish Lucy Cousins   V

Hooray for Bread  Allan Ahlberg, illus  Brice Ingman

Hortense and the Shadows O’Hara Sisters             

How to hide a lion Helen Stephens   V      

I

I am Absolutely TOO Small for school Lauren Child    V           

I am Henry Finch Alexis Deacon             

I Love you Blue Kangaroo Emily Gravett    V         

I want to be in a scary story Sean Taylor                

I was made for you David Lucas                

If I had a dinosaur Gabby Dawnay, illus Alex Barrow

If I Had a Sleepy Sloth Gabby Dawnay, illus Alex Barrow

If you meet a dinosaur Paul Bright, illus Hannah George

In the dark dark wood Jessica Souhami   

Iris and Isaac Catherine Rayner V

The Iron Man Ted Hughes    AB   

J

 The Jasmine Sneeze  Nadine Kaadan

Jolly Christmas Postman Allan Ahlberg, illus Janet Ahlberg   V

The Journey Home Frann Preston Gannon

Julian is a mermaid Jessica Lowe

The Jumblies Edward Lear  V    AB 

          

K

Katie & the dinosaurs James Mayhew           

The King who Banned the Dark Emily Haworth Booth

The King With Dirty Feet  Sally Pomme Clayton, illus. Rhiannon Sanderson

Kipper’s Birthday Mick Inkpen    V             

Knuffle Bunny Mo Willem    V     

L

The Last Wolf Mini Grey  

Last: The Story of the White Rhino Nicola Davies   V

Leon the Extraordinary Jamar Nicholas V

The Lighthouse Keeper’s Lunch Ronda and David Armitage V

Lima’s Red Hot Chilli David Mills, ill. Derek Brazell V

The Lion Inside Rachel Bright   

Little Bad Man and the Killer Aunties Humza Arshad and Henry White,  Illus Aleksei Bitskoff   V   AB

Little Monkey  Marta Altés  V 

Little Mouse’s Big Book of Fears Emily Gravett  

Little Red and the Very Hungry Lion Alex T Smith   

LIttle Rabbit Foo Foo Michael Rosen, Arthur Robins (illus) 

The Littlest Yak Lu Fraser, ill. Kate Hindley     V

Look Up! Nathan Bryon, illus Dapo Adeola

Lost and Found Oliver Jeffers              

Lullabyhullababboo Mick Inkpen               

Lulu gets a cat Anna McQuinn, illus Rosalind Beardshaw

The Lumberjack’s beard  Duncan Beedie           

Luna Loves library day Joseph Coelho, illus Fiona Lumbers

Lunchtime Rebecca Cobb  

M

Macavity T S Eliot    V   AB       

Man on the Moon, a Day in the life of Bob  Simon Bartram           

Mango and Bambang, The Not-a-Pig  Polly Faber, illlus Clara Vulliamy

The Marvellous Moon Map Teresa Heapy, illus David Litchfield

Matisse’s Magical Trail Tim Hopgood, illus Sam Boughton

Max the Brave Ed Vere

Maybe… Chris Haughton V

Meg and Mog Helen Nicholl ,illus Jan Pienkwski

Miró’s Magic Animals Antony Penrose V

Mister Magnolia Quentin Blake            

Meet the Parents Peter Bently, illus Sara Ogilvie

Mog the Forgetful Cat Judith Kerr                 

Monkey and Me Emily Gravett             

Mr Bunny’s Chocolate Factory Elys Dolan                  

Mr Gumpy’s Outing John Burningham       

Mrs Noah’s pockets Jackie Morris, illus James Mayhew

My Brother is a Superhero David Solomons   AB

My Dad Anthony Browne        

My Green Day Melanie Walsh   

My Must-Have Mum   Maudie Smith, illus. Jen Khatun

My Sister is an alien Rachel Bright    

          

N

Naughty Bus Jan and Jerry Oke       

A New House for Mouse Petr Horacek              

The New Neighbours Sarah McIntyre           

The New Small Person Lauren Child               

The Night Pirates Peter Harris, illus Deborah Allwright

Nimesh the Adventurer Ranjit Singh, illus Mehrdokht Amini

No Dinner Jessica Souhami          

Not Now Bernard David McKee     

         

O

The Odd Egg Emily Gravett             

Oh No George! Chris Haughton           

Oi! Get off our train John Burningham       

Oliver’s Vegetables Vivian French, illus  Alison Bartlett

On Sudden Hill Linda Sarah, illus Benji Davies

On the Moon Anna Milbourne, illus Benji Davies

Once upon a star  James Carter, illus Mar Hernandez

One dog and his boy Eva Ibbotson      AB        

Orange Pear Apple Bear  Emily Gravett             

Ottoline and the Yellow Cat Chris Riddell               

The Outlaw Varjak Paw SF Said      V    AB               

The Owl and the Pussycat Edward Lear  

P

             

Pandora  Victoria Turnbull         

The Paper Dolls  Julia Donaldson, illus Axel Scheffler

Pattan’s pumpkin  Chitra Soundar, illus Frane Lessac

Peace at Last  Jill Murphy                 

Peck Peck Peck Lucy Cousins 

Phoenix S F Said    V     AB

Pirate Stew   Neil Gaiman, illus. Chris Riddell   V

Please Mr Magic Fish Jessica Souhami          

Please Mr Panda Steve Antony              

Pom Pom is Super Sophy Henn   
  
The Princess and the Greedy Pea , Leigh Hodgkinson 

Pugs of the Frozen North  Philip Reeve, illus Sarah McIntyre

Pumpkin Soup Helen Cooper             

Q

Quiet Tom Percival, ill. Richard Jones V

Quill Soup Alan Durant   

Q Pootle 5 Nick Butterworth       

             

R

Rama & the Demon King Jessica Souhami          

Red Car Red Bus  Susan Stegall 

Rigatoni the Pasta Cat  Michael Rosen, Illus. Tony Ross

Robin’s Winter Song  Suzanne Barton          

Rocketmole  Matt Carr                   

Room on the Broom Julia Donaldson, Illus Axel Scheffler

Rosie’s Walk Pat Hutchins  

S

   

The Secret Sky Garden Linda Sarah  

Saving Winslow Sharon Creech  AB

Secret of the Tattered Shoes Jackie Morris, illus. Ehsan Abdollahi    V    AB

Shark in the park Nick Sharrat  

Shhh!   Sally Grindley, illus. Peter Upton

Shh we have a plan Chris Haughton           

Shifty McGifty and Slippery Sam Tracey Corderoy, illus Steven Lenton

The Skull Jon Klassen V

Silly Suzy Goose Petr Horacek              

The Snail and the Whale  Julia Donaldson, illus Axel Scheffler

Snow  Sam Usher                 

The Snowbear Sean Taylor 

The Snowflake Benji Davies     

So Much Trisha Cooke, illus Helen Oxenbury

The Something Rebecca Cobb

Sona Sharma, Looking After Planet Earth  Chitra Soundar, illus Jen Khatun    AB      

Sophie and the new Baby Catherine & Laurence Anholt

Space Dog Mini Grey                   

Space Tortoise  Ross Montgomery, illlus David Litchfield

Stanley’s Stick  John Hegley, illus Neal Layton

Steven Seagull Action Hero Elys Dolan                  

Stomp Chomp Big Roars! Here come the Dinosaurs Margaret Mayo, illus Alex Ayliffe

Stomp Dinosaur Stomp Kate Umansky, illus Nick Sharratt

Stop the Clock  Pippa Goodhart, illus. Maria Christiana V

The Storm Whale Benji Davies               

A Story about Afiya James Berry, illus Anna Cunha                                                                                                               

Sunk! Rob Biddulph             

Superbat Matt Carr    

SuperJoe does not do cuddles Michael Catchpool, illus. Emma Proctor

Super Milly and the Super School Day  Stephanie Clarkson, illus. Gwen Millward    V 

T

Tad Benji Davies               

The Tale of Angelino Brown David Almond       AB     

10 things I can do to help my world Melanie Walsh 

Ten Delicious Teachers   Ross Montgomery, illus. Sarah Warburton V

The Three Happy Lions  Louise Fatio, illus. Roger Duvoisin

Tilly and the Time Machine Ade Edmondson, illustrated by Danny Noble    

That rabbit belongs to Emily Brown Cressida Cowell          

There’s a rang tan in my bedroom  James Sellick, illus Frann Preston-Gannon

There’s a tiger in the garden Lizzy Stewart V

This is Our House Michael Rosen, illus Bob Graham

The Thunk Michelle Robinson, illus. Deborah Allwright

Tidy Emily Gravett             

Tiger Walk Dianne Hofmeyr, illus Jesse Hodgson

The Tiger who came to Tea Judith Kerr                 

The Tin Forest  Helen Ward, illus Wayne Anderson

Titch  Pat Hutchins     

Tomorrow Nadine Kaadan          

Tom’s Sausage Lion Michael Morpurgo      AB

Toys in space  Mini Grey                   

Traction man  is here!  Mini Grey                   

Train  Judi Abott                  

The Train Ride June Crebbin, illus Stephen Lambert

Tyger SF Said, iIllus Dave McKean V AB

Tyrranosaurus Drip Julia Donaldson   

 

U

Uncle Gobb and the Dread shed Michael Rosen, illus Neal Layton

V

Valentine’s Guest House Sam Sharland V

Varjak Paw  SF Said      AB               

The Very Hungry Caterpillar Eric Carle   

           

W

The Way Back Home Oliver Jeffers   

The Weed Quentin Blake           

We’re going on a Bearhunt Michael Rosen, illus Helen Oxenbury

We’re Going to Find the Monster Malorie Blackman, illus. Dapo Adeola   V

What the Ladybird Heard Julia Donaldson, illus Lydia Monks

Whatever Next Jill Murphy                 

The Wheels on the Bus Annie Kubler

Where my feet go Birgitta Sif                  

Where the Wild Things Are  Maurice Sendak          

Where’s my Teddy? Jez Alborough             

Where’s Spot? Eric Hill                      

Window Jeannie Baker    

When the Sky Falls Phil Earle V AB

The Wolf Wilder  Katherine Rundell     V    AB

The Wooden camel Wanuri Kahiu, illus Manuela Adreani

Y

You’re snug with  me Chitra Soundar

Z

The Zebra’s Great Escape Katherine Rundell, ill. Sara Ogilvie V AB

Zombierella Fairy Tales Gone Bad Joseph Coelho, illus. Freya Hartas  V   AB                                                     

Here’s a complete list of all our book activity pages – click on the link and it will take you to the activity page

   

Aaaarrgghh Spider Lydia Monks  V

The Acorn Edward Gibbs                                                                                                                                  

Alfie Gets in first Shirley Hughes  V      

Almost Anything  Sophy Henn                

The Animal Boogie Debbie Harter  V        

The Astounding Broccoli Boy Frank Cottrell Boyce, illus. Steve Lenton  AB 

Avocado Baby John Burningham       

The Bad Bunnies Magic Show Mini Grey

Bear Shaped Dawn Coulter-Cruttenden   V

Beatle Boy  MG Leonard  V  AB             

Beegu  Alexis Deacon             

Betty goes Bananas  Steve Antony  V          

The BFG Roald Dahl                 

Billy and the Beast Nadia Shireen  V           

Billy’s Bucket  Kes Gray, llus Garry Parsons  V

Biscuit Bear Mini Grey  V                 

A Bit Lost Chris Haughton   V        

Black Cat White Cat Silvia Borando            

Blue Chameleon Emily Gravett             

Boot: Small Robot Big Adventure Shane Hegarty   AB         

The Boy who Climbed into the Moon David Almond             

Brown Bear Brown Bear, What Do You See?   Bill Martin Jnr, illus Eric Carle

Buckle and Squash and the Monstrous Moat Dragon Sarah Courtauld

Burglar Bill  Allan Ahlberg, illus  Janet Ahlberg  V

Charlotte’s Web EB White  AB                

The Chinese Emperor New Clothes  Ying Yang Competine, illus David Roberts  V

Chocolate cake Michael Rosen, illus Kevin Waldron  V

The Christmas Eve Tree Delia Huddy,  illus Emily Sutton  

Cinderella of the Nile Beverley Naidoo  V

Clean up!  Nathan Bryon, illus. Dapo Adeola

Clever Polly & the Stupid Wolf  Catherine Storr            

The Crocodile who didn’t like water Gemma Merino   V     

The Darkest Dark Chris Hadfield, illus The Fan Brothers  V

The Dawn Chorus Suzanne Barton

Dear Dinosaur Chae Strathie, Nicola O’Byrne

Dear Zoo Rod Campbell             

Dig dig digging Margaret Mayo, illus Alex Ayliffe  V

Diggersaurs Michael Whaite  V         

Dinosaur chase Benedict Blathwayt    

Dinosaur roar Paul Strickland, illus Henrietta Strickland

Dinosaurs and all that rubbish  Michael Foreman  V     

Do not enter the monster zoo Amy Sparkes, illus Sara Ogilvie

A Dog So Small Philippa Pearce   V        

Dogger Shirley Hughes           

Down by the station Jess Stockham

The Drum  Ken Wilson Max, illus Catell Ronca

Dylan’s amazing dinosaurs EJ Harper, illus Dan Taylor

Each Peach Pear Plum  Allan Ahlberg, illus Janet Ahlberg

The Elephants umbrella Laleh Jaffari,  illus Ali Khodai

Eliot Midnight Superhero Anne Cottringer, illus Alex T Smith

Elmer David McKee

Eloise Undercover Sarah Baker             

The Everywhere Bear Julia Donaldson, illus Rebecca Cobb

The Explorer  Katherine Rundell       

Everybody’s Welcome Patricia Hegarty, illus Greg Abbott

Farmer Duck Martin Waddell, illus Helen Oxenbury

Five little men in a flying saucer Dan Crisp                   

Five Minutes Peace Jill Murphy                 

Flora and Ulysses, the illuminated adventures Kate Camillo               

Fortunately the Milk Neil Gaiman, illus Chris Riddell

Gerald the lion Jessica Souhami          

The Ghost train Allan Ahlberg, illus Andre Amstutz

The Gigantic Turnip Alexsei Tolstoy, illus Naimh Sharkey

The Girl and the dinosaur Hollie Hughes, illus Sarah Massini

Goodbye Grandma Melanie Walsh           

Goodnight Spaceman Michelle Robinson, illus Nick East

Grace and Family  Mary Hoffman, illus Caroline Binch

Granpa John Burningham       

A Great Big Cuddle Michael Rosen, illus Chris Riddell

Grobblechops Elizabeth Laird, illlus Jenny Lucander

The Gruffalo  Julia Donaldson, illus Axel Scheffler

Grumpy Frog  Ed Vere                      

The Hairy toe Daniel Postgate

Handas surprise Eileen Browne            

Harry and the bucket of dinosaurs Ian WhyBrow, illus Adrian Reynolds

Here come the aliens Colin McNaughton   

The Highwayman Alfred Noyes   

The Highway Rat  Julia Donaldson, illus Axel Scheffler

Honey biscuits  Meredith Hooper, illus Alison Bartlett

Hooray for Fish Lucy Cousins

Hooray for Bread  Allan Ahlberg, illus  Brice Ingman

Hortense and the Shadows O’Hara Sisters             

How to hide a lion Helen Stephens          

I am Absolutely TOO Small for school Lauren Child               

I am Henry Finch Alexis Deacon             

I Love you Blue Kangaroo Emily Gravett             

I want to be in a scary story Sean Taylor                

I was made for you David Lucas                

If I had a dinosaur Gabby Dawnay, illus Alex Barrow

If you meet a dinosaur Paul Bright, illus Hannah George

In the dark dark wood Jessica Souhami          

The Iron Man Ted Hughes                

Jolly Christmas Postman Allan Ahlberg, illus Janet Ahlberg

The Journey Home Frann Preston Gannon

Julian is a mermaid Jessica Lowe

The Jumblies Edward Lear              

Katie & the dinosaurs James Mayhew           

The King who Banned the Dark Emily Haworth Booth

Kipper’s Birthday Mick Inkpen               

Knuffle Bunny Mo Willem                 

The Last Wolf Mini Grey  

The Lion Inside Rachel Bright   

Little Bad Man and the Killer Aunties Humza Arshad and Henry White,  Illus Aleksei Bitskoff

Little Mouse’s Big Book of Fears Emily Gravett  

Little Red and the Very Hungry Lion Alex T Smith   

LIttle Rabbit Foo Foo Michael Rosen, Arthur Robins (illus)               

Look Up! Nathan Bryon, illus Dapo Adeola

Lost and Found Oliver Jeffers              

Lullabyhullababboo Mick Inkpen               

Lulu gets a cat Anna McQuinn, illus Rosalind Beardshaw

The Lumberjack’s beard  Duncan Beedie           

Luna Loves library day Joseph Coelho, illus Fiona Lumbers

Lunchtime Rebecca Cobb  

Macavity T S Eliot           

Man on the Moon, a Day in the life of Bob  Simon Bartram           

Mango and Bambang, The Not-a-Pig  Polly Faber, illlus Clara Vulliamy

The Marvellous Moon Map Teresa Heapy, illus David Litchfield

Matisse’s Magical Trail Tim Hopgood, illus Sam Boughton

Max the Brave Ed Vere                      

Meet the Parents Peter Bently, illus Sara Ogilvie

Meg and Mog Helen Nicholl ,illus Jan Pienkwski

Mister Magnolia Quentin Blake            

Mog the Forgetful Cat Judith Kerr                 

Monkey and Me Emily Gravett             

Mr Bunny’s Chocolate Factory Elys Dolan                  

Mr Gumpy’s Outing John Burningham       

Mrs Noah’s pockets Jackie Morris, illus James Mayhew

My Brother is a Superhero David Solomons

My Dad Anthony Browne        

My Green Day Melanie Walsh           

My Sister is an alien Rachel Bright              

Naughty Bus Jan and Jerry Oke       

A New House for Mouse Petr Horacek              

The New Neighbours Sarah McIntyre           

The New Small Person Lauren Child               

The Night Pirates Peter Harris, illus Deborah Allwright

Nimesh the Adventurer Ranjit Singh, illus Mehrdokht Amini

No Dinner Jessica Souhami          

Not Now Bernard David McKee              

The Odd Egg Emily Gravett             

Oh No George! Chris Haughton           

Oi! Get off our train John Burningham       

Oliver’s Vegetables Vivian French, illus  Alison Bartlett

On Sudden Hill Linda Sarah, illus Benji Davies

On the Moon Anna Milbourne, illus Benji Davies

Once upon a star  James Carter, illus Mar Hernandez

One dog and his boy Eva Ibbotson              

Orange Pear Apple Bear  Emily Gravett             

Ottoline and the Yellow Cat Chris Riddell               

The Outlaw Varjak Paw SF Said                       

The Owl and the Pussycat Edward Lear               

Pandora  Victoria Turnbull         

The Paper Dolls  Julia Donaldson, illus Axel Scheffler

Pattan’s pumpkin  Chitra Soundar, illus Frane Lessac

Peace at Last  Jill Murphy                 

Peck Peck Peck Lucy Cousins 

Phoenix S F Said              

Please Mr Magic Fish Jessica Souhami          

Please Mr Panda Steve Antony              

Pom Pom is Super Sophy Henn                

Pugs of the Frozen North  Philip Reeve, illus Sarah McIntyre

Pumpkin Soup Helen Cooper             

Q Pootle 5 Nick Butterworth        

Quill Soup Alan Durant                

Rama & the Demon King Jessica Souhami          

Red Car Red Bus  Susan Stegall              

Robin’s Winter Song  Suzanne Barton          

Rocketmole  Matt Carr                   

Room on the Broom Julia Donaldson, Illus Axel Scheffler

Rosie’s Walk Pat Hutchins               

The Secret Sky Garden Linda Sarah  

Secret of the Tattered Shoes, Jackie Morris, illus. Ehsan Abdollahi

Shark in the park Nick Sharrat               

Shh we have a plan Chris Haughton           

Shifty McGifty and Slippery Sam Tracey Corderoy, illus Steven Lenton

Silly Suzy Goose Petr Horacek              

The Snail and the Whale  Julia Donaldson, illus Axel Scheffler

Snow  Sam Usher                 

The Snowbear Sean Taylor                

So Much Trisha Cooke, illus Helen Oxenbury

The Something Rebecca Cobb             

Sophie and the new Baby Catherine & Laurence Anholt

Space Dog Mini Grey                   

Space Tortoise  Ross Montgomery, illlus David Litchfield

Stanley’s Stick  John Hegley, illus Neal Layton

Steven Seagull Action Hero Elys Dolan                  

Stomp Chomp Big Roars! Here come the Dinosaurs Margaret Mayo, illus Alex Ayliffe

Stomp Dinosaur Stomp Kate Umansky, illus Nick Sharratt

The Storm Whale Benji Davies               

A Story about Afiya James Berry, illus Anna Cunha                                                                                                                                                               

Sunk! Rob Biddulph             

Superbat Matt Carr                   

Tad Benji Davies               

The Tale of Angelino Brown David Almond             

10 things I can do to help my world Melanie Walsh 

Tilly and the Time Machine Ade Edmondson, illustrated by Danny Noble    

That rabbit belongs to Emily Brown Cressida Cowell          

There’s a rang tan in my bedroom  James Sellick, illus Frann Preston-Gannon

This is Our House Michael Rosen, illus Bob Graham

Tidy Emily Gravett             

Tiger Walk Dianne Hofmeyr, illus Jesse Hodgson

The Tiger who came to Tea Judith Kerr                 

The Tin Forest  Helen Ward, illus Wayne Anderson

Titch  Pat Hutchins     

Tomorrow Nadine Kaadan          

Tom’s Sausage Lion Michael Morpurgo      

Toys in space  Mini Grey                   

Traction man  is here!  Mini Grey                   

Train  Judi Abott                  

The Train Ride June Crebbin, illus Stephen Lambert

Tyrranosaurus Drip Julia Donaldson          

Uncle Gobb and the Dread shed Michael Rosen, illus Neal Layton

Varjak Paw  SF Said                       

The Very Hungry Caterpillar Eric Carle                    

The Way Back Home Oliver Jeffers   

The Weed Quentin Blake           

We’re going on a Bearhunt Michael Rosen, illus Helen Oxenbury

What the Ladybird Heard Julia Donaldson, illus Lydia Monks

Whatever Next Jill Murphy                 

The Wheels on the Bus Annie Kubler

Where my feet go Birgitta Sif                  

Where the Wild Things Are  Maurice Sendak          

Where’s my Teddy? Jez Alborough             

Where’s Spot? Eric Hill                      

Window Jeannie Baker             

The Wooden camel Wanuri Kahiu, illus Manuela Adreani

You’re safe with me Chitra Soundar           

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Many young children are fascinated by villains such as robbers and pirates and would like to imagine themselves saving the day as a hero, or even a superhero! Here you will find a selection of stories for you to share together with video links as well. We have included lots of ideas for fun activities to extend children’s imaginative play about the stories.

IT’S EASY! JUST CLICK ON A BOOK FOR ACTIVITIES

 

Our specially chosen books about heroes and villains

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Philip Pullman
Corgi Books
Age 7-9

The Firework Maker’s Daughter is a short novel set in Indonesia. It tells the story of Lila, a young girl who longs to be a fully qualified firework maker, just like her father Lalchand. Although Lalchand teaches Lila some of his skills, he refuses to share all his secrets with her, feeling a husband rather than a career is more fitting for a girl. Lila is determined to discover he secrets of being a firework maker herself setting off on a perilous quest assisted by her friend Chulak, a white elephant and a band of pirates.

This is an engaging and exciting story in the style of a traditional tale with a feminist theme and lots of humour from a master storyteller.

Presenter Saira Khan talks about the book and reads an extract here: English KS1 / KS2: The Firework-Maker’s Daughter’ by Philip Pullman – BBC Teach

Read the opening of the story here Extract | The Firework-Maker’s Daughter by Philip Pullman (penguin.co.uk)

Talk about the story

After reading chapter one :

• talk about Lila and her father and what they both think about what Lila’s future might be

• share your views on using an elephant as a mobile billboard – writing advertisements on him. Is it right to use an animal like this?

When you have finished the book

• share your favourite scenes and favourite characters and talk about why you chose them

• talk with your child about what they would tell a friend about the book

 

Things to make and do

Make a zig zag book
Make a zig zag book of characters from the story, with one per page and an illustration and line or two explaining who each character is.

Make a story map
Use a large piece of paper to draw a map of the story world include Lalchand’s workshop, the Elephant House, the Palace, the jungle, the river, the village, the Emerald Lake, Mount Merapi. Think about Lila and Chulak’s journeys and plot them on the map.

 Make a colourful picture – a painting, collage, wax resist Crayon Resist Art – My Kid Craft  or wax scratch Crayon Etching Fireworks Picture (activityvillage.co.uk)  You could choose to illustrate:

• • The emerald lake and the water goddess with lanterns and blossom

  • The grotto of the fire fiend

  • The firework competition in the final scene

Make up a firework dance
Have fun dancing like fireworks think about the kinds of movements and shapes you might make. Here is some music to inspire you:
Tchaikovsky Nutcracker Suite – Russian Dance Trepak – YouTube

Prince Igor, Act II: Polovtsian Dances. No. 17, General Dance. Allegro – YouTube

 

Download our activity book here

 

Find out more

Find out about author Philip Pullman Philip Pullman – Welcome (philip-pullman.com)

Read more books by  Philip Pullman, other books by the author for this age group include:

I was a Rat or the Scarlet Slippers
Clockwork
The Scarecrow and his Servant
Philip Pullman is most well-known for the His Dark Materials Trilogy for children 9+

Find out about fireworks
Watch a short section of this video showing a firework festival in Japan
Best Fireworks Festival “Nagaoka” Nigata JAPAN – YouTube

Find out more about fireworks including their history and the different effects they can make
Firework Facts for Kids (kiddle.co)

What are the Different Types of Firework? – Firework Crazy (fireworkscrazy.co.uk)

Fireworks can be very dangerous find out about safety here Firework Safety – UK Fire Service Resources

Find out more about volcanoes
Mount Merapi is an active volcano in Java, Indonesia. Find out more about volcanoes here:

Volcanoes – BBC Bitesize

Volcano facts | National Geographic Kids (natgeokids.com)

All About Volcanoes: How They Form, Eruptions & More! – YouTube

 

 

 

 

Many young children are fascinated by villains such as robbers and pirates and would like to imagine themselves saving the day as a hero, or even a superhero! Here you will find a selection of stories for you to share together with video links as well. We have included lots of ideas for fun activities to extend children’s imaginative play about the stories.

IT’S EASY! JUST CLICK ON A BOOK FOR ACTIVITIES

Our specially chosen books about heroes and villains