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It’s National Share a Story month! So you know what that means… Let’s share some of our favourite stories! Feel free to comment your favourite stories in the comments below!
Alice Whitehead
This year’s theme for National Share a Story month is “belonging”, which I feel is a fantastic topic for KS1 children. It teaches valuable social skills that can be used in all areas of life. Loads of stories come to mind when thinking about belonging, but my “top of the list” has to be “The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and The Horse '' by Charlie Mackery. This book follows the story of four unlikely friends, and their journey together. They share an immovable friendship and it is clear throughout the book that they care deeply for each other. It follows themes such as love, hope, and the courage to ask for friendship when you need it most. Not only is it a beautiful story, it is also beautifully illustrated, and one to enjoy for any ages!
Alex Prentice
Hi! My name is Alex Prentice and I am a secondary English tutor here at SAT. The book I chose for National Share a Story Month is Nimedai Purna is Nepalese born and first joins the Gurkhas and goes on to join the Special Boat Service (SBS). SBS is an elite fight force in the British Army - think like the SAS but they also jump out of planes and do operations on the sea.
Despite coming from an area of Nepal where many families struggle with the everyday necessities Nims is always striving to push himself further than others around him - something which seems to have derived from his family.
He was not from a mountaineering background and indeed climbing at high altitudes was not the norm for him. However, after attempting and summiting Everest in 2017, he had caught the bug. He then decided to push himself to complete 14 of the world's tallest mountains - in just under 7 months. The world record at the time was 7 years and 8 months. People would always tell him that it was impossible but through resilience, teamwork and determination, project possible begins!
This non-fiction book has the running theme of belonging throughout. He finds it difficult to fit in with his Nepalese lifestyle once he moves to England and joins the SBS. He finds himself trapped in between two worlds. The West pulling him one way, while his traditional Nepalese family pulling him the other, and his experience of never truly fitting in either. He struggles with this dynamic throughout as he finds it challenging to gain financial support that he needs to fund such an enterprise and keep his family life happy and healthy. It is his overall optimistic attitude which fuels his drive and makes the reader contemplate how they address difficulties in their own life.
Jack Collins
My favourite book about belonging for National Share a Story Month is The Hobbit by J.R.R Tolkien.
I teach KS2 and it can be a difficult age in terms of literature. Books tend to focus on younger children or teenagers, so to find a book that uses great vocab, keeps attention and challenges their comprehension skills is wonderful and rare.
The Hobbit covers a range of themes; belonging, perseverance, stepping outside your comfort zone and greed. We find our hero Bilbo having to leave the safety of his (lonely) home with a party who do not trust or hold him in esteem. Throughout our story both they and he learn the lesson that we are stronger together than apart. They see that strength comes in many forms and that there is far more that binds us than separates us. A reader comes to see that without this acceptance or sense of belonging, they never would have succeeded in their quest. Apart from all this it is also an excellently exciting fantasy to get wrapped up in, so an all round winner for the kids!
Emma Venner
Hello! I’m Emma, one of Sammie Allen Tutoring’s science tutors.
One of my favourite books is The Midnight Library by Matt Haig. The book is about experiencing different lives you could have lived by choosing a book from the mysterious library and reading the book of your alternate life! Many people have regrets and can see what life would be without them. What I love about the book is that it inspires you to make the little changes to your current life and to really live in the moment!
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