Professor Xargle explains to his class of extraterrestrials how humans behave in different kinds of weather.

Includes CD-Rom Why are visual approaches to literacy important? Children′s experience of texts is no longer limited to words on printed pages - their reading and writing worlds are formed in multimodal ways, combining different modes of communication, including speech or sound, still or moving images, writing and gesture. This book is a practical guide for teachers in making sense of multimodal approaches to teaching writing. The book covers topics such as: - The design of multimodal texts and the relationships between texts and images - How to build a supportive classroom environment for analysing visual and audiovisual texts, and how to teach about reading images - How to plan a teaching sequence leading to specific writing outcomes - Examples of teaching sequences for developing work on narrative, non-fiction and poetry - Formative and summative assessment of multimodal texts, providing levels for judging pupil development, and suggestions for moving pupils forward - How to write, review and carry out a whole school policy for teaching multimodal writing The book is accompanied by a CD, which contains a range of examples of children′s multimodal work, along with electronic versions of the activities and photocopiable sheets from the book, and material designed for use with interactive whiteboards. It will be a valuable resource for primary teachers, literacy co-ordinators and students on initial teacher training courses.

How is academia portrayed in children's literature? This Element ambitiously surveys fictional professors in texts marketed towards children, who are overwhelmingly white and male, tending to be elderly scientists. Professors fall into three stereotypes: the vehicle to explain scientific facts, the baffled genius, and the evil madman. By the late twentieth century, the stereotype of the male, mad, muddlehead, called Professor SomethingDumb, is formed in humorous yet pejorative fashion. This Element provides a publishing history of the role of academics in children's literature, questioning the book culture which promotes the enforcement of stereotypes regarding intellectual expertise in children's media. This title is also available, with additional material, as Open Access.

This book builds on the guidance given by the Primary Strategy for Literacy. By 'filling in the gaps' that the planning documentation leaves, the book provides teachers with the structures and ideas to plan creatively and effectively for their children whilst following and enhancing the recommendations of the strategy. It includes: clear and practical ways to plan units of work that embrace reading, writing, speaking and listening, in exciting and active ways examples of effective practice using children's work that highlight the effects of creative planning suggestions for texts and resources that can be included in half-termly and termly planning. Written by a team of leading educationalists and teacher educators in the primary literacy field, this edited collection is a must-have for primary teachers wishing to inject creativity into the planning of their literacy lessons.

"Good morning, class. Today we are going to learn about Earthlets." In this way Dr Xargle, our friendly alien teacher, begins to teach his class about humans and babies. This is a hysterically funny book, with a particularly wry look at the way we bring up babies: look out for the 'egg-mangle' - will you ever want to eat egg again?

First published in 1997. In this book the author intends to explore some of the many questions which arise as a result of increasing awareness in our society about equality issues. Can the attempt to make books for children consistent with contemporary views about equality go too far? In any case, are children really as much influenced by books and other material as some educationalists would claim? What can or should we do about the 'classics' Of the past? And are today's children's writers so much better at avoiding giving offence to minorities? How much are children affected by the kind of prejudices and preconceptions that we all grow up with but don't always succeed in acknowledging in later life?