National Non-Fiction November

From Federation of Children's Book Groups

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 this year’s National Non-Fiction November is ‘Wonderful Water’.

The FCBG website provides resources to support National Non-Fiction November, including:

  • Themed booklists.
  • Ideas and activities to support National Non-fiction November.
  • A themed competition for children aged 5-12. The deadline for this year’s competition is Monday 4th December 2023.

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:

  • Sign up by October 15th to take part in this year’s What on Earth! Schools Quiz Challenge, a non-fiction quiz for KS2 and KS3 students. Online heats will take place at the start of November with an in-person Finals Day in London on Monday 27th November.
  • Schools who sign up before 30th November 2023 to run a Readathon sponsored read in 2023/24 will receive a free digital bundle of non-fiction resources and author videos and be entered into a prize draw for the chance to win one of 10 boxes of non-fiction books for the library (five for primary schools and five for secondary schools).
  • Meet like-minded lovers of information books at You Couldn’t Make it Up!, a one-day conference celebrating non-fiction on 11th November in Somerset. Speakers include authors Andy Seed, Isabel Thomas and Nicola Davies. Tickets cost £10 for FCBG members and £20 for non-members.
  • 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.
  • 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.
  • 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.
  • 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.

Visit the resource

fcbg.org.uk

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