IN recent weeks the Schools Team at The Bookery, an independent and community bookshop based in Crediton, has been busy taking books into schools across Devon as part of World Book Day celebrations.

The team visited 16 schools and worked with 3,000 children!

Each year the Bookery’s Schools Team of experienced teachers, librarians and teacher trainers put together a collection of 20 Top Titles of recently published books for Primary aged readers.

Each book is carefully reviewed for content, quality of writing and illustration and age suitability so that the final collection includes picture books for the very young, short chapter books for developing readers and longer books for older readers.

Pauline Chater for the Schools Team, explained: "Variety is key so we include some non-fiction as well as stories which represent different themes and genres.

"We also put together a collection of 10 Super-Readable books which are dyslexia friendly, have shorter chapters and are designed for children aged 8-12 who may lack confidence as readers.

"On school visits, we showcase the collections and read to the children who then have the chance to buy a book of their choice.

"We are mindful that many families simply cannot afford money for books, so all the schools we visited purchased at least one of the collections for the school library. That way every child in the school has access to the collections."

She added that the visits and collections are very popular with schools.

One headteacher said of a recent visit: “We loved it! You supported us in promoting a real love of Reading”.

Pauline continued: "So why is it so important that children enjoy reading independently for pleasure?

"There is strong evidence that reading for enjoyment is a key factor in children’s educational success and helps to promote personal and emotional development.

"Yet a National Literacy Trust’s survey, carried out this year, found that fewer than half of children aged between eight and 18 said they enjoyed Reading!

"At The Bookery we do our very best to bring a love of Reading into children’s lives.

"If you are a parent, grandparent, aunt or uncle or family friend, then the gift of a book is something precious.

"You will be welcome to visit The Bookery where you can find out about our collections for children and ask for advice about the right book for a particular child. Better still, bring a child along with you and help to open their eyes to the pleasure of reading! 

"If you don’t live near Crediton, you can still get advice by visiting our website at: thebookery.org.uk , where you can find details of the books in our collections."