National Non-Fiction November
Resource type: Event
Price band: Free
Key stage: KS1, KS2, KS3
Region(s): All of UK
National Non-Fiction November was set up by the Federation of Children’s Book Groups as a way to highlight the importance of information books and to promote reading non-fiction for pleasure. Each year, National Non-Fiction November has a different theme. The theme for 2022 is Communication.
The FCBG website provides resources to support National Non-Fiction November, including:
- Themed booklists.
- An illustrated ‘Interview With’ competition. Based on the Interview With series, pupils aged 5-12 are invited to write and illustrate a Q and A style interview with an animal or historical character of their choice. Deadline for entries is 5th December 2022.
- Ideas and activities to help celebrate NNFN.
About The Federation of Children’s Book Groups: The FCBG is an umbrella organisation that coordinates and supports the work of local Children’s Book Groups across the UK. As well as events for parents and children organised at a local level, the FCBG also organises the FCBG Children’s Book Award and other national events to help bring children and books together.
Further resources:
- A report by the National Literacy Trust in 2022 has found that more than half of children and young people aged 8-18 read non-fiction in their free time. Non-fiction reading is also a great leveller, proving popular regardless of gender and socio-economic background. Find out more about the impact of non-fiction on young people’s motivation to read and their engagement with the world around them here.
- Are we enjoying A Golden Age of Non-fiction? This blog by Nikki Gamble of Just Imagine explores some of the features of good non-fiction writing and provides tips on what to look for when choosing non-fiction books for your library.
- Andy Seed, best-selling author of the Interview with a… series, has some tips on how to use factual book to get young people reading.
- Good sources of recommendations for non-fiction books include CLPE’s CoreBooks and Books for Topics. LoveReading4Kids have also produced a list of 100 Great Non-Fiction Books for children of all ages.
- Children’s book awards for non-fiction include the SLA Information Book Award, the Young People’s Book Prize and the UKLA Information Book Awards. Their shortlists are another good source of high-quality non-fiction titles for the library.
- Get your pupils involved with choosing the winner of the SLA Information Book Award and the Young People’s Book Prize to encourage them to read and discuss non-fiction books.
- Consider adding an age-appropriate newspaper and/or a non-fiction magazine to the library to provide a wide range of reading material for your students. Choose from a selection here.
- Don’t forget that non-fiction authors also do author visits and workshops. Authors Aloud and Authors Abroad both have non-fiction authors on their books and can help arrange a visit that fits your needs.
- Looking to explore the role of non-fiction in the primary classroom in more depth? Just Imagine and CLPE offer CPD courses that examine the specific reading and writing skills required by non-fiction and provide practical approaches for teaching non-fiction in the primary classroom.
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