Collins Big Cat Graded readers for seven-plus
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Collins Big Cat Graded readers for seven-plus
https://www.tes.com/magazine/archive/collins-big-cat-graded-readers-seven-plus
Collins Big Cat Graded readers for seven-plus. Various titles and authors. Collins Education. www.collinsbigcat.com
Individual readers pound;3.99 to pound;4.75 Assessment and support book pound;35. Evaluation pack pound;80 (12 readers, assessment and support book and course guide)
Though structured with the progression and security of a reading scheme, the Big Cat readers are books that stand as good titles in their own right.
Collins’ latest offering consists of 40 titles for key stage 2.
The line-up of authors is impressive, with contributions from established writers such as Margaret Mahy and Jeremy Strong. Margaret Mahy’s The Gargling Gorilla follows in the vein of her short stories. It’s a cleverly worked, absurd scenario, with a laugh-aloud joke.
Subject matter is well matched to the interests and curriculum of primary children. What Happened to the Dinosaurs?, a well illustrated consideration of the question posed in the title, combines with titles such as Football Spy, How to be a Tudor in 20 Easy Stages and The Monster Joke Book, to create a primary class library.
Shoo Rayner’s joke book mixes joke styles, while Scoular Anderson’s Tudor book is in the Horrible Histories tradition. Worth a mention in the 200th year since the abolition of the slave trade is Paul Thomas’s Olaudah Equiano: From Slavery to Freedom, a thoughtful retelling of the life of the former slave and campaigner.
These books have child appeal within a well-structured scheme, complete with banding and notes for guided reading. One omission: with such high quality authors, I would have liked an “About the author” note somewhere in each book.
Huw Thomas is head of Emmaus Primary, Sheffield
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