I’ve been thinking about writing a teaching blog for a long time, but I’ve always been intimidated by all of you wonderful educators who have taught me so much since the beginning of my teaching journey. But then one of you, who has been a source of so much information and inspiration, told me to go for it – so here I am! I’m no expert and I’m no writer. I’m just sharing my experiences.
Anyone who knows me knows that all of my spare (and then some) income goes on two things. Holidays and Books. Lots of books. I buy books faster than I could ever read them (that’s not just me right?) and sometimes I buy books I will probably never read. But hey, they make me happy! I read all sorts of different books, but most of them fit broadly into three categories.
- Young adult fiction
- Weird fiction (I’ll elaborate on this one day)
- Non-fiction
I love all three. But I want to share my thoughts on young adult fiction.
It’s just good
I sometimes think of ‘young adult fiction’ as an unfair label. It is just fiction, and a lot of it is really good fiction. If I pick one up I seem to always find it difficult to put back down, I’m usually gripped after the first few pages and desperate to know what happens to the characters. The narratives always take interesting twists and turns and there is a surprising richness to the language. I know this is true of a lot of fiction, but that is my point. People often make wise cracks about me reading kids books, but they are no different to any other! A good story is a good story, no matter how you dress it up.
It makes me a better teacher
Ok, so it doesn’t exactly mean that when I am trying to teach ‘A Christmas Carol’ I’m much better at it, but it helps when it comes to getting pupils reading. When they come to me and ask for help finding a book, even if they have read everything I have, at least they know I’m interested in books that they read. It means we can converse about books and characters and there seems to be a real appreciation and excitement that I enjoy the same books as they do. It has got to the point where students are coming to me with recommendations because they know I get excited about it. Of course, it also helps with pupils who haven’t read those books, particularly students who might be more reluctant. If I can get excited about a book, or better yet, a series of books, then some of that passes on. Of course it isn’t a magic trick. It doesn’t suddenly mean all of my students are reading. But it definitely helps, and that can’t be a bad thing right?
It also helps in terms of making comparisons. I find that I can say ‘you know in Harry Potter when this happens? Well that’s…’ or even in finding texts and extracts. It fascinates me that we seem to teach very little YA fiction to students when so much of it is so brilliant and the language in it is great for analysis!
It is a bit of a brain break
While I maintain that the language, plot and characters are all interesting and full of depth, there is a certain easiness that comes with reading YA fiction. It might be full of depth but it doesn’t make my brain hurt like Margaret Atwood or Dickens. It makes it quick and gives my brain a rest, which is exactly what I need during term time! I find flip flopping between YA and on YA to be the best way!
If its not something that already lines your bookshelves, its got to be worth a try right? The best I have read in the last year have got to be:
- The Explorer by Katherine Rundell
- The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
- Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds
- The Divergent Trilogy by Veronica Roth
Thanks for reading
Ms H
Just A Northern NQT 