Reading
At St Michael's School, reading is at the heart of all that we do. We have mindfully curated a bespoke sequence of texts that span from reception to year six. We believe that it is important for children engage with books that have stories and characters that they can relate to and see themselves in. With that in mind, we have incorporated a range of texts and genres that explore different religions, cultures and socioeconomic backgrounds. To ensure that our children experience a rich reading diet, each book/text has been selected to fit into one or more of our key categories: empathy, inclusive, culturally diverse, classics, modern classics, poetry, picture and Shakespeare.
Please see below for more details on the books given to Year 4:
Year 4 Reading Curriculum
Stig of the Dump
Nobody believes Barney when he says he's discovered a boy living wild in the dump. But for Barney, Stif is totally real. They become great friends, learn each other's ways and embark on a series of exciting adventures.
Peace and Me
What does peace mean to you? This collection of inspirational ideas about peace is based on the lives of Nobel Peace Prize Laureates of the 20th and 21st centuries, among them Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King Jr., Mother Teresa and Malala Yousafzai.
The Iron Man
A beautiful new edition of The Iron Man, the bestselling classic by Ted Hughes. The Iron Man came to the top of the cliff. Where had he come from? Nobody knows. How was he made? Nobody knows. Mankind must put a stop to the dreadful destruction by the Iron Man and set a trap for him, but he cannot be kept down. Then, when a terrible monster from outer space threatens to lay waste to the planet, it is the Iron Man who finds a way to save the world.
Poems to Perform
A vibrant collection of poems perfect to be performed by two or more voices! In this collection, Julia Donaldson has chosen poems with performance by children in mind, and in the notes section at the end of the book are her notes and ideas on performing them.
A Midsummer Night's Dream
A beautiful anthology of twelve of Shakespeare's best known stories retold for younger readers. Featuring much-loved classics such as The Tempest, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet and Othello, each story is rewritten in a comprehensive way that is accessible for children and stunningly illustrated by collage artist Alice Lindstrom. Year 4 will be focussing specifically on 'A Midsummer Nights Dream' when reading this text.
Boy at the Back of the Class
Told with heart and humour, The Boy at the Back of the Class is a child's perspective on the refugee crisis, highlighting the importance of friendship and kindness in a world that doesn't always make sense. There used to be an empty chair at the back of my class, but now a new boy called Ahmet is sitting in it. He's nine years old, but he's very strange. He never talks and never smiles and doesn't like sweets . But then I learned the truth: Ahmet really isn't very strange at all. He's a refugee who's run away from a War. A real one. With bombs and fires and bullies that hurt people. And the more I find out about him, the more I want to help.
The Chronicles of Narnia
- The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe
Four adventurous siblings―Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy Pevensie― step through a wardrobe door and into the land of Narnia, a land frozen in eternal winter and enslaved by the power of the White Witch. But when almost all hope is lost, the return of the Great Lion, Aslan, signals a great change . . . and a great sacrifice.
I Am the Seed That Grew the Tree
I Am the Seed That Grew the Tree, named after the first line of Judith Nicholls' poem 'Windsong', is a lavishly illustrated collection of 366 nature poems - one for every day of the year, including leap years. Filled with familiar favourites and new discoveries, written by a wide variety of poets.
Wabi Sabi
Wabi Sabi, a little cat in Kyoto, Japan, had never thought much about her name until friends visiting from another land asked her owner what it meant. At last, the master says, "That's hard to explain." And that is all she says. This unsatisfying answer sets Wabi Sabi on a journey to uncover the meaning of her name, and on the way discovers what wabi sabi is: a Japanese philosophy of seeing beauty in simplicity, the ordinary, and imperfection. Using spare text and haiku, Mark Reibstein weaves an extraordinary story about finding real beauty in unexpected places. Caldecott Medal-winning artist Ed Young complements the lyrical text with breathtaking collages. Together, they illustrate the unique world view that is wabi sabi. Wabi Sabi is a unique picture book that clearly explains a new way of seeing the world to readers.