What's On
We will be bringing schools in Maidenhead a wide range of FREE activities in March 2023.
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Big Read InspirationBringing bestselling authors and illustrators, as well as poets, story tellers, sporting heroes, prominent politicians, influential journalists and stars of the screen to share their stories and lives with local schoolchildren.
Have a look at the work some of our participating school students produced at a recent poetry workshop held by Coral Rumble. |
Big Read EnthusiasmFind a comfortable chair and pull out a book. Read to yourself, to your family or friends, or with one of our volunteer readers.
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Very positive sessions which engaged the children, reached out to reluctant readers and were appropriate for the ages of the children.
In 2022, our events were held between Tuesday 1st March and Thursday 10th March for Borough schools in the Maidenhead area. Our aim continues to be to inspire, enthuse and help children of all ages to learn through literature and the arts.
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The MBR Committee organised and presented its Big Read festival weekday programme for March 2022. You can either read it here or download it.
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And here is the weekend programme for the very successful Ocean Alive event that was held on Saturday 5th and Sunday 6th March 2022.
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Ocean Alive! Presenter Bios
Dr Russell Arnott
Marine biologist, oceanographer, award-winning communicator, author and YouTuber Audience: KS1 & KS2 Saturday 5th March at 11:15, 13:45 & 15:00 Sunday 6th March at 10:30, 11:45, 13:45 & 15:00 Duration: 20 minutes 1. My Favourite Whale – everyone has a favourite sea creature but pirate Rusty Cutlass is convinced his is the best! Let Rusty present his case for what he thinks the best whale ever is. Chock full of fascinating ocean facts and exciting demonstrations, you’ll never look at whales the same way again! 2. Journey into The Deep - Pirate / Marine Biologist Rusty Cutlass takes us on an underwater voyage into the deep ocean. As we encounter different creatures along the way, we stop to learn about just how weird life under the sea can be! |
3. Myths and Legends of The Seven Seas – using skulls, bones, teeth and other relics, pirate Rusty Cutlass talks us through some amazing myths and the science behind these monsters of legend!
4. The Ocean is My Home – Read along with Russell Arnott from the book and take away a free copy - The Ocean is bigger than the land, but we only see it’s surface. Jake is an Oceanographer. He collects information about the Ocean’s hidden world. In this book, Jake explains how the Ocean helps all of us, even if we live far away from it, and how every one of us can help our Ocean. http://www.incredibleoceans.org/ www.youtube.com/incredibleoceans |
Fiona Barker
Children's author Title: Setsuko and the Song of the Sea Audience: KS1 Date: Sunday 6th March 2022 Time: 12:00 Duration: 45 minutes Fiona is positively potty about picture books; reading them, writing them and talking about them! When writing, she longs for alliterative loveliness. When reading, she looks for the marriage of words and artwork and she loves anything that is fun to read aloud. She passionately believes that reading a book together is one of the great joys of life Fiona will be reading extracts from her book “Setsuko and the Song of the Sea” which was chosen by The Reading Agency for the #SummerReadingChallenge hosted by UK libraries last summer. This is followed by a whale themed quiz and a whale draw along. www.Fionabarker.co.uk |
Sarah L Jordan
Children's author Title: Teddy and I Audience: Early Years to Year 1 Date: Saturday 5th March 2022 Time: 10:00 Duration: 45 minutes Sarah is a new, self-published author. What started as a keepsake project for Sarah and her daughter became a lovely rhyming story which she chose to share with others. Sarah continues writing and is working on more books to build the, Teddy and I, book series. The session will start with a short reading by Sarah of her book Teddy and I Go To The Park. This is followed by a quick showing of bonus content (hand drawn illustrations, crochet pattern and find Teddy activity). Sarah will then discuss her upcoming books in the Teddy and I Series and show some illustrations. Finally a find Teddy hand out will be given to the children to play along with. https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B09KN81JMJ |
Leisa Stewart-Sharpe
Children's author Title: Adventures Around our Blue and Green Planet Audience: KS1 & KS2 Date: Saturday 5th March 2022 Time: 12:00 & 15:00 Duration KS1: 30 minutes Duration KS2: 45 minutes Leisa grew up in Australia, swimming on the Great Barrier Reef. She never once thought she’d end up writing children’s books about it! After training as a journalist, Leisa packed her bags and set off to see the world. She’s swum with sharks, been chased by a herd of elephants, and come face-to-face with an aye aye at night in the jungle. But the greatest adventure of all, is writing heart-thumping children's non-fiction and picture books, all from her home in the Chiltern Hills. www.leisastewartsharpe.com |
Eric Brutnall
Children's author and school teacher Title: Monster of the Waves Audience: KS1 & KS2 Date: Sunday 6th March 2022 Time: 14:00 Duration: 45 minutes Eric has been a primary school teacher for 20 years. He loves to share his story ideas with his children and he explores messages of how we can make the world a better place - both through looking after the planet and by looking after each other. He loves to travel and has visited many different places in the world. He has been inspired by traditional stories from countries and cultures. He has published two books- The Hope Star in January 2020 and The Monster in the Waves in March 2021. www.ericbrutnall.com |
Arti Sharma-Grey & Matt Grey
Immersive storytelling Title: Once Upon a Bus Audience: Early Years, KS1 & KS2 Saturday 5th March 2022 at 10:00, 10:30, 11:00, 12:00, 12:30, 13:30 & 14:00 Sunday 6th March 2022 at 10:30, 11:00, 12:00, 12:30, 13:30 & 14:00 Duration: 20 minutes
http://www.onceuponabus.com https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mrChUyi5srk |
Jeanette Kemp
Literacy consultant Title: How to encourage your child to read Audience: Early Years to KS1 with parents Date: Saturday 5th March 2022 Time: 12:00, 12:45 & 14:15 Duration : 20 minutes Looking for book suggestions to share with your child and encourage reading for pleasure? Join Jeanette for tips, encouragement and ideas on helping you to inspire your child to enjoy reading for pleasure; Ideas on board books through to short chapter books for independent reading; Book suggestions and advice. Each session consists of a short presentation with questions and answers. |
Gloria Barnett
Educator, biologist, scuba diver, underwater videographer and author Audience: KS1 & KS2 Saturday 5th March 2022 at 11:00 & 14:00 Sunday 6th March at 11:00 & 13:00 Duration : 45 minutes 1. Ocean World Secrets (KS2) 2. Prickle the Puffer Fish (KS1) 3. Oceans – an Alien World (KS2) 4. Ocean Environments (KS2) Gloria has written several ocean-themed books, and regularly talks about Oceans and the importance of keeping the oceans healthy to audiences around the world. Known as the ‘`Weird Fish Lady’, she will talking about the oceans as well as reading from three of her fiction books during this weekend, a picture book for younger readers and two ocean-themed adventure stories for older primary children. She will also read from her latest non-fiction book ‘50 Fabulous Facts about Ocean Creatures’. There is also a non-fiction book for all ages, young and old. This is a science book – ‘The World Beneath the Waves’ – which is a guide to understanding the oceans. It is written in everyday English, with all the science explained. Gloria is also the lead author for ocean-themed Teacher’s Resources which support teachers in their primary classrooms. www.barnettauthor.co.uk |
Returning weekday presenters included:
Dame Katherine Grainger (1st March): Dame Katherine reads from Mo Farah's book 'Go, Mo, Go
Arti Sharma-Grey & Jane Dean (1st March): The Once Upon a Bus duo returns for some more storytelling.
Simon Mole (3rd and 7th March): For World Book Day on 3rd March, Simon is doing an 'I love my bike' themed session and on 7th March, he'll be hosting a poetry day.
Kate Poels (3rd March): Also on World Book Day, Kate will be talking about 'Finding the fun in story writing'.
Coral Rumble (7th March):Coral presents 'Things That Should be in a Poem' and 'The Word Fun Olympics'
Martin Brown (8th March): Draw along with Martin, author and illustrator of ‘Nell and the Cave Bear’, and illustrator of the bestselling 'Horrible Histories' series.
Nick Sharratt (8th March): Nick will be presenting a session called 'Super Silly Museums' based on his new book.
Sue Palmer (10th March): Could you be an astronaut? Learn what it takes to be an astronaut 240 miles above you.
New presenters included:
Jenny Pearson (2nd March): Meet the author of 'The Super Miraculous Journey of Freddie Yates' and 'The Incredible Record Smashers' - laugh out loud adventures packed with heart and humour.
Chitra Soundar (4th March): Chitra will be running interactive sessions filled with fun storytelling and creative brainstorming.
A. F. Harrold (7th March): Author and poet, A. F. Harrold, will share poems from his latest book 'The Book of Not Entirely Useful Advice'. Expect a bit of chaos, a bit of anarchy and lots of glorious words.
Jasbinder Bilan (9th March): Create your own story maps with Jasbinder around the themes of family, friendship, home, magic, mythology and resilience.
Serena Patel (9th March): Meet the author of the 'Anisha, Accidental Detective' series.
Maz Evans (10th March): Join a fun Q&A with the bestselling author of the 'Who Let the Gods Out', 'Vi Spy' and 'The Exploding Life of Scarlett Fife' series.
Book Trail
We prepared two book trails for children to complete at school with their friends after Christmas, with two brilliant pieces to get children moving and reading at the same time.
Dame Katherine Grainger (1st March): Dame Katherine reads from Mo Farah's book 'Go, Mo, Go
Arti Sharma-Grey & Jane Dean (1st March): The Once Upon a Bus duo returns for some more storytelling.
Simon Mole (3rd and 7th March): For World Book Day on 3rd March, Simon is doing an 'I love my bike' themed session and on 7th March, he'll be hosting a poetry day.
Kate Poels (3rd March): Also on World Book Day, Kate will be talking about 'Finding the fun in story writing'.
Coral Rumble (7th March):Coral presents 'Things That Should be in a Poem' and 'The Word Fun Olympics'
Martin Brown (8th March): Draw along with Martin, author and illustrator of ‘Nell and the Cave Bear’, and illustrator of the bestselling 'Horrible Histories' series.
Nick Sharratt (8th March): Nick will be presenting a session called 'Super Silly Museums' based on his new book.
Sue Palmer (10th March): Could you be an astronaut? Learn what it takes to be an astronaut 240 miles above you.
New presenters included:
Jenny Pearson (2nd March): Meet the author of 'The Super Miraculous Journey of Freddie Yates' and 'The Incredible Record Smashers' - laugh out loud adventures packed with heart and humour.
Chitra Soundar (4th March): Chitra will be running interactive sessions filled with fun storytelling and creative brainstorming.
A. F. Harrold (7th March): Author and poet, A. F. Harrold, will share poems from his latest book 'The Book of Not Entirely Useful Advice'. Expect a bit of chaos, a bit of anarchy and lots of glorious words.
Jasbinder Bilan (9th March): Create your own story maps with Jasbinder around the themes of family, friendship, home, magic, mythology and resilience.
Serena Patel (9th March): Meet the author of the 'Anisha, Accidental Detective' series.
Maz Evans (10th March): Join a fun Q&A with the bestselling author of the 'Who Let the Gods Out', 'Vi Spy' and 'The Exploding Life of Scarlett Fife' series.
Book Trail
We prepared two book trails for children to complete at school with their friends after Christmas, with two brilliant pieces to get children moving and reading at the same time.
Teachers may wish to download our newly updated World Book Day Ideas for Teachers guide. And if you have any ideas you would like to have included in the guide, please let us know.