In this short video, Jonny Walker explores the history of limericks, the structure of a limerick, and then he sets you off writing your own! It is part of the Writes of Passage project, designed to promote skillful and authentic writing for pleasure, for children in KS2 and KS3.

Jo Castro leads a short workshop video exploring the definition and use of pathetic fallacy, as a way to support children to develop their fiction writing repertoire.

Jonny Walker shares a brief history of the Oxford English Dictionary, before introducing the terms ‘dialect’ and ‘idiolect’. Children produce a personal dictionary and they are guided to explore their own use of language.

Jo Castro shares tips on how to write effectively about yourself, on application forms. It might help you become Head Girl/Boy, get to university or grab that first job.

Jo Castro introduces the genre of magical realism, and looks at how we can play with its typical features to enrich our creative writing. She is joined by a menacing lamp.

Jonny Walker builds on Jo Castro’s session on magical realism, to talk about ‘the uncanny’. How can we explore ‘the uncanny’ through our creative writing, to create unease, blending the strange and the familiar.