Amid the avalanche of words written for football fans during the World Cup, perhaps the most unusual and original will be those created by children’s author Tom Palmer. Unlike the reporters and pundits who are documenting events in Russia, Palmer has a very particular mission. Throughout the tournament he is posting daily entries of a story called Defenders: Russia, a tale that mixes fact and fiction and is aimed at a group of young people who are classed as “reluctant readers”.
“There is often a strong correlation between reluctant readers and those interested in sporting events like the World Cup,” Palmer says. “The idea is to draw in readers who might otherwise think that all stories are set 300 years ago and in places they have never been to and will never go to either.”
Palmer’s story, which is set to the backdrop of the Russian Revolution, weaves in the latest developments from the World Cup. So, in the days before England’s game against Tunisia, one of the central characters, Seth, saw the vision of a young boy, Alexei Romanov. The ghostly figure threatened to derail England’s campaign unless Seth could recover the Fabergé egg that Alexei’s father, Czar Nicholas II, had given
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This combination of historical and contemporary material is updated
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http://www.giantsfootballofficialonline.com/YOUTH+PHIL+SIMMS+JERSEY to the thousand or so schools that have signed up to receive the story. Palmer has become practised in the art of mixing fact and fiction on a daily basis, having previously written similar stories about men’s and women’s major football tournaments and the Rugby World Cup.
The fact that the narrative incorporates developments from the previous night’s games in Russia gives the story a real sense of immediacy. “The children really enjoy the experience of sitting in a classroom having a story read to them about events that happened less than 12 hours ago.” says Palmer. “The main objective is to engage young readers and in particular those children who might not enjoy reading or think that fiction is not for them. It makes children who don’t like stories look more
http://www.authenticwashingtonnationalsshop.com/Joaquin-Benoit-Jersey positively at stories and it makes children who don’t like football books look at football stories more positively.”
The story is aimed at kids between the ages of nine and 13, to encourage them to read and become more involved in the whole process of storytelling. Palmer also adds interactive elements to the lessons. “I set writing tasks tied to specific events,” he says. “So, I’ll say to them: ‘England have a match, which they have to win. If you were Gareth Southgate, what three things would you include in that pre-match speech?’ The children then put themselves in the position of people both on and off the field, so they understand how storytelling works.”
The initiative is run in association with the National Literacy Trust, a charity that aims to encourage disadvantaged children to read more. There is much work to do. One in eight disadvantaged children in
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The National Literacy Trust believe sport can play a crucial role in raising children’s literacy levels, so they have provided various resources, such as posters, worksheets, quizzes and exercise sheets, to help bring Palmer’s story to life. Palmer has also sought to involve schoolchildren in how the story will develop. At the end of every week, the children are given the chance to vote on where the narrative should go next.
Although Palmer’s story will only last a month, anything that captures the attention and imagination of reluctant readers is worthwhile. Hopefully these children will keep on reading. When the tournament reaches its climax in Moscow on 15 July, there will be a
http://www.officialauthenticchargerstore.com/womens_forrest_lamp_jersey group of schoolchildren watching with added interest as they know the action on the pitch will affect the final chapter of their own World Cup story the next morning.
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