Pupils from as young as five up to fifteen have taken a leaf from the same book as part of a new initiative.
Children in Reception through to Year 9 at Arnold Lodge School (ALS), a leading Warwickshire independent school, have been getting involved with Book Week.
Book Week typically sees Junior School pupils from Reception to Year 6 taking part, but this year, pupils all the way up to Year 9 at ALS have been getting inspired by the same text.
The pupils have been taking their inspiration from Mark Janssen’s picture book ‘Island’, which tells the story of a shipwreck and a family being stranded on a desert island.
Pupils have been using the book as inspiration to create pieces of work including creative writing, artwork and sculptures.
Peter Smart, Head of Upper Juniors School at Arnold Lodge School, said: “It’s been wonderful to see pupils throughout the school getting involved and studying the same book.
“There have been some incredible creations that have come out of Book Week, and it’s been a great opportunity for pupils from different year groups to discuss the same text and use it as their inspiration.
“Our Year 5 class have been creating and decorating paper mache turtle shells taking inspiration from the turtle in the story, and writing their own message in a bottle.
“As well as producing some impressive artwork, Year 3 have been practicing their creative writing skills, while Years 7, 8 and 9 have also been taking inspiration from the text to write their own short stories, analyzing the tone and atmosphere of the book.”
Amy Gulliver, Head of Humanities in the Senior School, added: “Pupils from Reception all the way up to our Senior School have loved getting involved in this initiative – there’s a real sense of community at Arnold Lodge School, and seeing so many pupils engaging with the same text has been a great opportunity.
“For each year group, they have been approaching the text at a level that’s appropriate for their age and as it is a picture book, our older pupils have been trying to put themselves in the author’s shoes and create their own story based on the atmosphere created by the images.”
