Little mouse goes for a walk in a dangerous forest. To scare off his enemies he invents tales of a fantastical creature called the Gruffalo. SO, imagine his surprise when he meets the REAL Gruffalo...

‘Some Pig’. ‘Humble’. ‘Radiant’. These are the words in Charlotte's Web, high up in Zuckerman's barn. Charlotte's spider web tells of her feelings for a little pig named Wilbur, who simply wants a friend. They also express the love of a girl named Fern, who saved Wilbur's life when he was born the runt of his litter.

E. B. White's Newbery Honor Book is a tender novel of friendship, love, life, and death that will continue to be enjoyed by

generations to come.

Luckily, there are lots of fun and easy ways to encourage early reading success at home.

Before you start reading a book, talk about the title and the pictures on the cover (front and back). 

Ask your child what they think the story might be about. 

After reading, ask your child what they liked about the story.

Try asking ‘who’ and ‘where’ and ‘what happened’ questions about the story and the pictures. 

For example: ‘Who can you see?’ ‘Where is the pig?’ ‘What’s happening on this page?’

Your child’s teacher will give you visual symbols to to support understanding around reading.

Singing songs and nursery rhymes helps your child to hear the sounds in words and build up a bank of favourites they know well. Play with words and sounds and make up nonsense rhymes too. Encourage them to join in.

When you are reading to your child, ask them to join in with bits that are repeated. For example, ‘Run, run, as fast as you can! You can’t catch me, I’m the gingerbread man!’. Traditional stories, like The Gingerbread Man, often have repeated phrases, and children will love doing the voices!

Rhyming games are fun and will help your child start to hear and understand speech sounds. Try ‘I spy’ when you are out and about. Have fun with rhyming words – for example, can your child think of a word that rhymes with ‘cat’?

In all games and activities, make sure you pronounce speech sounds clearly. 

“Wise old man, won't you help me, please?”

A little old lady sits grumbling and grousing in her house. 

It’s too small and tiny, she moans. She begs the wise old man to help her.

He encourages to bring in all her animals, including a cow and a very hungry pig. Mayhem soon ensues and the poor lady’s house seems even more cramped and titchy than before! But the wise old man has a plan to help the little old lady appreciate what she has.

A delightfully funny rhyming story. Children will enjoy the repetition and reading this out loud. The illustrations are colourful and there’s plenty to enjoy in this classic story.

little creature, but the Earth People don’t seem very welcoming at

all. But so far she has only met the BIG ones. 

The little ones are a different matter....

This is a beautifully illustrated, touching story that was also

shortlisted for the Kate Greenaway Medal in 2003. It is a  

heartwarming story about being lost and lonely and offers a timely

reminder about how we should treat outsiders. Beegu is a

charmingly realised creation and the story’s depth and subtlety

means that you will want to return to it again and again.

Poor George is fed up of being the scruffiest giant in town. His

sandals are old and his gown is mucky and tired looking. George

decides it’s time for a brand-new look. Decked out in shiny shoes,

a smart, stripy tie and a crisp, white shirt, George looks and feels

wonderful.

However, on his way home, George bumps into some animals

who desperately need his help...and his clothes!

A bright, cheerful story that young readers will enjoy. The

repetitive, rhythmic nature of the story makes it perfect for

developing prediction skills and George is a likeable, endearing

main character.

flowerpot there is a key and Syd can let himself into Grandad’s

any time he pleases. One day, Syd finds Grandad in the attic, with

his suitcase packed. Together, they step through a big metal door

onto a ship. The ship sails across the waves and to a gloriously,

radiant island full of exotic creatures, colour and adventure. Syd

and Grandad build a shelter, paint and play together in the cool,

cascading waterfalls. Until, Grandad tentatively tells Syd that he is

staying on the island and will not return home with him...

A stunning, moving picture book that subtly and sensitively tackles

themes of loss, saying goodbye and grief. This is plenty to explore

and enjoy on Grandad’s peaceful island and the relationship

between Syd and his beloved Grandad is beautifully captured.

Perfect for all age groups.

Fergal gets very...VERY...ANGRY.

Fergal the dragon is a friendly, popular chap. However, he has a

fiery temper that’s always getting him into trouble. He hates being

told what to do! Whether it’s eating his vegetables before dessert,

being asked to play in goal or losing at a board game, Fergal just

cannot control his anger. Eventually, his friends have had enough

and start to ignore him. Luckily, Mum is there to offer advice and

support and give him some helpful strategies to control his anger!

A delightful, funny story about what happens when we get angry

and how to control our tempers. Perfect for Younger children, with

its colourful illustrations, cute characters and message about

managing our emotions.

Alan comes from a long line of very scary alligators.

Sneaking into the jungle every morning and scaring all the other

animals is his favourite thing to do!

He roars things like:

‘I’M BIG, SCARY ALAN! FEAR MY ROAR-SHARP TEETH!’

But Alan as a terrible secret and everything is not as it seems.

When Barry the beaver discovers Alan’s not-so-scary secret, Alan learns a very valuable lesson...

This is a bright, busy, brilliant book, full of exotic colours. It’s witty, charming and very funny and perfect for young readers!

something much better than a frog or a newt. They find a bog

baby. Small and blue with wings like a dragon, the girls decide to

make him their secret. I won't tell if you won't.

But the bog baby is a wild thing, and when he becomes poorly,

the girls decide they must tell their mum. And she tells them the

greatest lesson: if you really love something, you have to let it go.

When Elmore gets a new little brother, he is not very excited about it. He talks about why having a baby brother is no fun until one night he has a nightmare and his baby brother is the only one there to comfort him. Next thing he realizes, having a brother isnt so bad when they like the same things and have enough stuff that they can line it all up to the door. Suddenly he wants to share everything and enjoys having his baby brother.

Sally is just a baby when she first begins to soar above her house and over the garden. Soon she sees her brother and other children floating over the rooftops. ...

when a terrible monster from outer space threatens to lay waste to the planet, it is the Iron Man who finds a way to save the world.

This is a compelling and exciting story with many excellent opportunities for vocabulary development with Year 3 and 4 children.

grandmother is Baba Yaga, who guides spirits between this world and the next. Marinka longs to change her destiny and sets out to

break free from her grandmother's footsteps, but her house has

other ideas...

he doesn't know that yet. All he knows, at this very moment, is this:

1. There is a flock of excited pigeons in his bedroom.

2. They are talking to him.

3. His life will never be quite the same again...

This best seller by Piers Torday is always a hit.

This is a stunning story! It cleverly blends elements of a picture book and graphic novel and is full action, humour, monsters and gods. Arthur is a delightful hero too – brave, clever, curious and witty. This would be perfect for any classes studying the Viking or

for exploring the structure of a myth. A perfect, engaging, colourful introduction to Norse mythology.

cause her more trouble than he's worth?

out simple, but they quickly become bigger, faster, crazier - and they almost always involve wheels. But then Dad loses his job, and everything changes. Sadness clouds the house like a winter sky.

That is, until Tom comes up with a brilliant plan that takes their

amazing vehicle inventions and creates something astounding -

something the world has never seen before . . .

town to rubble. Imagine going on a long and difficult journey – all

alone. Imagine finding no welcome at the end of it. Then imagine

a child who gives you something small but very, very precious...

When the government refused to allow 3000 child refugees to

enter this country in 2016, Nicola Davies was so angry she wrote a poem. It started a campaign for which artists contributed

drawings of chairs, symbolising a seat in a classroom, education,

kindness, the hope of a future. The poem has become this book,

movingly illustrated by Rebecca Cobb, which should prove a

powerful aid for explaining the ongoing refugee crisis to younger

readers.

The familiar noises, repetition and beautiful illustrations make Jill Murphy's delightful Peace at Last an all-time favourite bedtime story.

He keeps it clean and entertains passing space tourists as well as giving guided tours. He knows everything about the moon and that there is definitely no such thing as aliens!

But then Mum returns, and they feel comfortable and reassured. Owl Babies is a wonderful book to share with babies and young children to help tackle anxieties and fears about temporary separation.

This Book Just Ate My Dog! is the latest picture book from Richard Byrne. This cute funny book quickly draws the reader in by addressing them and asking them to interact with the book and help solve the problem faced by the characters.

Rocket - she's going to be the greatest astronaut, star-catcher, space-traveller that has ever lived!

But... can she convince her big brother to stop looking down at his phone and start LOOKING UP at the stars?

Bursting with energy and passion about science and space, this heart-warming, inspirational picture book will have readers turning off their screens and switching on to the outside world

Poor Duncan. His crayons are a demanding bunch. After finally

making his last group of crayons happy, his new set of crayons

sure are a colourful bunch of characters!

Having soothed the hurt feelings of one group who threatened to

quit, Duncan now faces a whole new group of crayons asking to

be rescued.

wrong and crashing her broomstick. And when she turns Ethel, the teacher's pet into her worst enemy, chaos ensues...

The Worst Witch is a classic, bestselling novel that children aged 7- 9 will love. It’s funny, exciting and full of action. Allow your child to

fall under the spell of its great writing.

a townhouse in London. Toto is almost totally blind, and learned to

trust her senses from a ninja cat-master who taught her back in

Italy where they were born. By day, Toto and Silver seem to be

ordinary cats, but by night, they love to have adventures!

One evening, news reaches Toto that a king cobra has escaped

from London Zoo! Together with help from a very posh cat and

two hungry tigers, Toto and Silver must investigate. Can they find

the giant snake, before it's too late?

Purrfect for reading aloud or for children to curl up with and read

alone, the story features brilliant black and white illustrations

throughout. With gentle themes of friendship, inclusivity and

winning in the face of adversity, this is a hilarious must-read for all animal-loving kids!

trips, stumbles and falls ... into the Stone Age! He meets a strange,

mysterious girl his own age called Om and her tribe. Rather than

being worried, the young boy is excited by his time-travelling

adventure. He learns all about the tribe’s way of life. He watches

them make tools, clothes, jewellery and weapons. He sees how

they hunt, cook, celebrate – and even how they paint on the

walls of caves. But when a big furious cave bear attacks, he

wakes up back in his own time where everyone tells him it was

only a dream. But was it?

rather more fallible light: Not only is Mr. Noah making a list of animals that shall be spared, but he also sees the crisis as an "ideal time to get rid of those more troublesome creatures."

She only has one kind of thing to say.

Just as cats go miaow and cows go moo,

The Truth Pixie can only say things that are true.

A very funny and lovable tale of how one special pixie learned to love herself. The Truth Pixie is an enchanting, rhyming story that will

delight younger readers – with words by the bestselling mastermind Matt Haig and pictures by the inky genius Chris Mould.

grandad's garden, he doesn't think much of it but he takes the

funny fruit from the tree back into the house - and gets the shock

and delight of his life when a tiny dragon hatches! The tree is a

Dragon fruit tree, and Tomas has got his very own dragon, Flicker ...

Tomas soon finds out that life with Flicker is great fun, but also very

... unpredictable. Yes, dragons are wonderful, but they also set fire

to your toothbrush and leave your pants hanging from the TV

aerial. Tomas has to learn how to look after Flicker - and quickly.

And then something extraordinary happens - more dragon fruits

appear on the tree. Tomas is officially growing dragons ...