When I think of children’s literature, my mind is immediately creating images of book shelves and book tubs with far-away places jumping from the pages – be that in images or words. From my first day of teaching my own bookshelves have been ever-increasingly weighed down with books.

This however, is not where my knowledge of children’s literature ends. While my shelves may be bursting, there is an eclectic range of texts amongst the stories which are on my shelves. There is the literature which is there to entertain; I imagine books like “The Treehouse Series” by Andy Griffiths or “Marvel Comics” which conjures up intergalatic travel, all created to capture imagination and laughter. There are also picture books which come to mind with this, some combining images and songs, such as Anh Do’s “What do they do with all the poo from all the animals at the zoo?”, others with reverse psychology as a tool to get children to continue reading, thanks to Andy Lee and “Do NOT Open This Book”. There is also literature which is used to inform and or describe; the semi-modern classic “Where is the Green Sheep?”  by Mem Fox, informs of concepts, such as near and far, colours or jobs in amongst the rhyme and pictures. Lastly, literature may be written to persuade. When I think of nursery rhymes, they come with a ‘moral of the story’ involved, which is there to provoke thought by the reader or literature consumer.

Of course, this is not the only purpose of children’s literature. Creativity is a huge reason for stories and story-telling. As a person who is naturally drawn to artistic ways of thinking, children’s literature is such a way which helps children do this.

While I personally have a reasonable knowledge of specific literature suitable for primary years, I also look to others for their opinions and suggestions. Blogs such as that by Barbara Braxton https://thebottomshelf.edublogs.org/ , review and offer their opinion on the latest offerings which publishers are producing. Networking with my colleagues also provides a collective knowledge of what is available.

I have no doubt that this subject is going to offer me far more ways in which to connect with and expand my knowledge of children’s literature and I eagerly look forward to doing so.