World Book Day 2021

World Book Day 2021

“At Hornsby House, we believe that inspiring children to love reading, to choose to read and to grow and develop into ardent and avid readers is perhaps the greatest gift that teachers can pass on”

Miss Petridou, Head of English (Upper School)

Although the majority of pupils were learning remotely, all were invited to participate in a series of exciting activities linked to World Book Day.

Our youngest pupils in the EYFS had the pleasure of a storytelling & draw-along workshop led by artist, author and illustrator Petr Horacek (The Best Place in the World).

Year 1 explored the flexibility of the mind and body during an immersive introduction to Yoga via the medium of storytelling, provided by Sirrka Fisk from Once Upon a Yoga Mat.

Year 2 joined Sophy Henn, author-illustrator of the Pizazz and Bad Nana series, for a superhero-themed hour of imagination. 

Pupils and staff dressed up as their favourite book character which made for some amusing surprises during remote lessons, as it is not every day that you have Gerald the Giraffe, Pongo from 101 Dalmatians, or Little Red Riding Hood taking part in your phonics group!

The fun continued further up the school …

Year 3 discovered how to engage their inner comedian during Friday morning’s Laugh a Minute stand-up comedy class, preceded on the day before by a Matilda-themed drama workshop, examining the importance of setting, character and storyline.  At the end of this session, the children were invited to join in with an improvised storytelling opportunity.

Vashti Hardy, author of the books  Brightstorm (shortlisted for the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize 2019) and Wildspark (Blue Peter Book Award winner 2020)  inspired our oldest pupils to create their own version of a fantasy world.

The selection of interactive lessons, events, workshops and challenges ensured that all members of the Hornsby House community were able to continue to foster a love of reading.  We would like to thank our joint heads of the English Department, Mr Long and Miss Petridou, for organising the terrific, inclusive timetable.