Previously known as Schools’ Week, Readers to Writers is an eight-month creative writing project open to primary schools in Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin that takes place every two years.

The aim of the Readers to Writers project is to help teachers support children in the classroom with their creative writing skills. By the end of the project, every participating child will have created their own book, which they can then enter into a Shropshire-wide creative writing competition.

To inspire and support both teachers and pupils, the Readers to Writers project provides a range of resources, including:

• Access to a Readers to Writers CPD conference at the University Centre Shrewsbury.
• In-school workshops with an author who acts as a writing mentor to the children.
• A set of books by the workshop author.
• Access to in-depth resource materials to help teachers plan and deliver creative writing lessons throughout the project.

A winner for KS1 and KS2 from every school that takes part will be chosen. From these winners, the judges will select the top stories for each Key Stage to be read aloud, filmed and published on the Bookfest website.

Timetable:

• To participate schools must register by mid October.
• Readers to Writers launches in schools in January.
• Author workshops take place in February and March.
• The deadline for submitting entries for the writing competition is the end of the Spring term.
• The winners are announced in the summer term.

Cost: £180 school registration + £14 per child.

About Shropshire Bookfest: Shropshire Bookfest is a charity dedicated to inspiring, enthusing and entertaining children through literature and the arts. It was founded in 1999 and was awarded the Queen’s Award for Excellence in the Voluntary Sector in 2009.