New children’s publishing: how to stay up-to-date

August 9th 2021

It’s never been more important for teachers to have a broad range of up-to-date knowledge of children’s publishing.

Evidence shows that having teachers ‘model’ a love of reading for their pupils encourages them to make reading for pleasure a lifelong habit. According to a report by The Reading Agency, children who read for pleasure are more self-aware, interact better with others and are more able to focus and relax. Early years children gain stronger communication skills and are more likely to achieve good educational results longer term.

The Department of Education’s reading framework, published in July 2021, suggests that knowledge of children’s publishing – including contemporary children’s literature – is vital so that teachers can read a wide range of books in school and recommend a variety of books to pupils, not only to encourage reading but to celebrate cultural diversity and to ensure that all pupils are included. 

Why diversity and inclusion are important in children’s publishing

Having a diverse and inclusive range of literature available within schools so that children see themselves reflected in the books they read is crucial.

Offering a diverse collection allows all pupils to find titles that they can read and connect with which not only affirms their own cultural identities but develops important positive insights into other people’s cultures. If teachers are aware of all the books available, rather than just the classics or bestsellers by Roald Dahl, J.K. Rowling or David Walliams, the more likely it is they will find books that reflect all of their pupils’ experiences.

The Reflecting Realities report by the Centre for Literacy in Primary Education (CLPE) reveals the under-representation of ethnic minority characters in children’s literature. In the last three years, only 7% of the entire industry output featured ethnic minority characters yet 33.5% of pupils are from a black, Asian or minority ethnic background. However, there is a steady increase in ethnic minority characters – growing to 10% in 2019 – and there is no shortage of talented British authors from ethnic minorities.

The CLPE hopes that school bookshelves will feature a broad range of quality inclusive and representative literature that reflects the realities of its readership and broadens the outlooks of its readers.

How to stay up-to-date with children’s publishing

We understand that teachers are time-poor with many competing priorities, so what are the best ways to keep up-to-date with children’s books?

Our team of curriculum specialists share their top tips on how to keep up with what’s new in children’s publishing.

• Visit your local bookshops to browse. If you’re able to visit us, the Peters showroom in central Birmingham has more than 40,000 titles in stock and our team can advise you on the best new books.
• Consider joining a book group for teachers. Reading Teachers = Reading Pupils is a national network of teachers reading groups that aims to inspire reading for pleasure.
• Sign up for the Teachers’ Reading Challenge. The challenge, which runs until September 19, is an opportunity for school and library staff to expand their knowledge of contemporary children's books and develop their understanding of reading for pleasure pedagogy.
• Read magazines such as Pen & Inc and The School Librarian. Websites such as Teachwire also review books.
• Follow book-related accounts on social media such as Twitter and Instagram. Many school libraries and book lovers share what they’re reading and book reviews (see our suggestions in the useful websites/blogs links below).
• Some teachers or former teachers host book recommendation sites for schools, and also share their reviews on social media (see links to useful websites/blogs below)
• Follow key children’s book awards to see which books are longlisted and shortlisted and the winners. They should give you an idea of the best new books published within a particular year. There are high-profile awards like the Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Awards, Waterstone’s Children’s Book Prize and YA Book Prize, but don’t miss others too – like The Branford Boase Award for first-time authors, CLiPPA for poetry and the new Jhalak Children’s and YA Prize which celebrates diverse books. There’s also the Information Book Award, which is great for highlighting the best new non-fiction for children and young people.
• The BookTrust Bookfinder is also useful and will help you discover the best books available for a range of genres and themes – including new titles.

Don’t forget that every type of reading is valid, so magazines and information books count too. Share what you’re reading with your pupils to encourage them to read whenever and wherever they can. 

Not sure where to start? Try our curriculum specialists' 100 books for every year group. 

Useful websites/blogs for teachers:

The Reader Teacher: https://www.thereaderteacher.com/

Reading for Pleasure: http://childrenreadingforpleasure.blogspot.com/

Books for Topics: https://www.booksfortopics.com/ 

School Reading List: https://schoolreadinglist.co.uk/

Teachwire: https://www.teachwire.net/school-books

Pen & Inc: https://www.cilip.org.uk/page/penandinc

Armadillo Magazine: https://www.armadillomagazine.co.uk

Useful Peters links:

www.peters.co.uk/awards

https://peters.co.uk/100-books-for-every-year-group-primary

www.peters.co.uk/news-and-blog

www.peters.co.uk/book-lists

Twitter accounts to follow:

@_Reading_Rocks_

@jonnybid

@clpe1

@booksfortopics

@MrEPrimary

@PenandIncBooks

@rcharlesworth