So, in all transparency: this post has been planned since September. I have not, until now, had a spare moment to sit down and write this post, let alone TDO2. When I said teaching was a very time-consuming job, it was not a lie! But here we are, a little insight to the books that I bought for my class earlier in the summer, and what I’ve seen has been quite popular over this first term.

When I moved into my new classroom this summer, I was so excited. A new space, and a new bookshelf. The first thing I always do whenever I move, is to unpack and organise my books; I never feel ready to settle until those stories have homes.

So as I sat down in front of my white, nine-shelved, horizontal bookshelf I was admittedly a bit overwhelmed. The last few teachers had left loads of books, and I was eager to see what gems I would find.

Suffice to say, there were more coals than there were diamonds.

It didn’t take long within the five minutes of me sitting there to realise that my bookshelf was incredibly outdated, boring and white-washed. The non-fiction books had barely any substance to them, and I couldn’t imagine any child finding something to spark their imagination here. Considering how much more focused they are on TV and media these days, having the right books accessible to the children is of the upmost importance. My bookshelf in its current state was failing them.

Over the next few days, I spent an hour and a half digging through the shelves, discarding (hiding in a cupboard) about 70%. Then came my favourite part of being a reader: filling the shelf back up. I was fortunate enough that after my wedding, I had found almost £200 that I had tucked away, forgotten about and never ended up using. So, I went on a hunt for recently published books that were about diverse characters, in various places written by diverse authors.

For three days I scoured the internet, searching for second-hand books that would interest my readers. World of Books, AbeBooks and coincedentally, Amazon (though this was always my last resort) quickly had carts full of books, and I ended up buying 13 books – plus some more once term started.

I tried to get a range of genres and interests, as I wasn’t quite sure what kind of readers I was going to inherit come September, but now being almost finished with the Autumn Term, plenty of these books have been explored.

So what did I get?

Some of these books were definitely bought with my younger self in mind, as they excited my inner reader! I believe that children should have access to literature that is pleasant to see as well as read, and must teach something about the world to its reader, whether that’s geographically, culturally, or emotionally. I have yet to read all of these books, but if there are any that I would suggest parents and teachers have a good look at, they would be:

• Big – I sat on the floor of Waterstones and cried. I didn’t realise a picture book could have such an impact on an adult, and I will scream about this book from the rooftops.
• Lore of the Land – As a lover of fantasy, this non-fiction book is a fantastic way of inspiring writing and learning about different cultures and stories. Such beautiful pictures too!
• The Last Firefox – is a book that we’ve been reading as a class, and are thoroughly enjoying! Some fantastic nuggets of wisdom in a brilliant plot of friendship, family and brave sacrifice.

I’m fortunate that my class are already passionate readers and that I don’t have to do much to engage them in picking up new books. Of course, there’s books here and there that aren’t the greatest quality, but I’m glad they’re reading, and I will continue to bring in my own books (with my own personal stamp!) to keep that flame fresh.

As long as they take care of my precious.

If you want to buy any of the books I’ve mentioned, you can find them here on my Bookshop page: https://uk.bookshop.org/wishlists/9d3e4b05ff450ab5c262ee552148536c395769d5