Last month, Class 3O at Brecknock Primary School studied the work of Tamarind author Verna Wilkins. They each wrote her a letter asking questions about her life. On Thursday, Verna visited Class 3O in person!  Their teacher Siobhan reports… 

Class 3O have been studying many books by the author Verna Wilkins, including biographies of Stephen Lawrence and Benjamin Zephaniah, as part of the Literacy Unit Authors and Letters. When they wrote to her to ask her to come and visit, imagine their surprise when she did! Especially as they were to first to hear her read her new book, Abdi’s Day which is not due out until September 2010.  Here are some of the class’ comments about her visit:

Danae: “It was delightful that what I wanted to happen happened on Thursday because Verna Wilkins came when we wrote letters to her.”

Josh: “It was extremely good that our dream to meet Verna Wilkins came true.  She is an extremely nice woman and she told us about how she wrote her books.”

Merrill: “It was amazing to see Verna Wilkins and her telling us her new story, Abdi’s Day.  I asked her if she would ever write her autobiography and she said she would get to work on it when she gets home!”

Amal: “It was so outstanding to meet Verna Wilkins because I really want to be an author when I grow up and she told me everything about how to be a writer.”

This morning Ben Morley, the author of The Silence Seeker, dropped into our office from Singapore during his holiday in London.

After a minute’s silence, Ben enthralled an audience with an intimate reading. The publicity director, managing director and production controller were among those who enjoyed the story and asked Ben questions. Although we can’t repeat the magic of the book read aloud, you can see a video Q & A with Ben below.

Ben signed copies of the book which you can win on Facebook and Twitter next week.

What inspired Ben to write The Silence Seeker

Ben Morley on… Favourite books

Ben Morley on… The Crown Prince of Brunei

Ben Morley on… Being a writer

Ben Morley on… Workshopping the book

This week Ealing Council held its Early Years conference. Tamarind founder and author Verna Wilkins gave the keynote speech. Verna shared a lifetime of experience and success with local practitioners. The event was held to launch Building Futures: Believing in Children, a government document giving guidance on inclusion in the Early Years. Verna brought the Tamarind titles to life, injecting heart and humour into good inclusion practice. Here’s what the audience thought:

“She was so inspirational.  Every word she said had a deep meaning to it.  I thoroughly enjoyed her speech.” - Attendee from Ealing Montessori School

“[Verna's speech] reminded me as to why I am still in teaching. Does she do talking books???!!! What a fantastic reader.” – Delegate from Greenfields Children’s Centre

“We should have more sessions like this to enhance our creativity and understanding of the world.” – Attendee from Sudbury Hill Montessori School

“[Verna] encouraged me to look and think about what children say and to promote children learning through their personal experiences.” – Delegate from Windmill Children’s Centre

Multicultural bookseller Colourful Kids displayed the full range of Tamarind’s Early Years titles on the day.

You know you’ve done something special when children are studying you at school. The charming Class 3O from Brecknock Primary School in Camden wrote to tell us about their work on Verna Wilkins‘ books. Their teacher Siobhan says:

"We have really enjoyed reading your books this term... The children were so motivated by your stories and have asked that we contact you."

Here are a few of the letters for you to enjoy. Thanks Class 3O!

Equipped with a range of beautiful Tamarind picture books, Verna Wilkins visited Whitefriars School in Harrow. The head teacher Lynne Pritchard requested the visit because she is aware of “the importance of adequately meeting the educational needs of all the children, regardless of their ethnic origin.”

Tamarind books focus on universal themes, making them accessible and engaging resources for use all year round, and not only to be dusted off in Black History Month each October. Verna highlighted the curriculum topics, early socialisation themes, shared experiences and family life in the books. One powerful example, The Silence Seeker is popular because of the interwoven themes of migration, the value of silence, noisy city life and friendship without words. The lyrical writing and stylish illustrations widens its appeal to older children.

With the Tamarind range on board, the teachers felt able to deliver a truly multicultural curriculum. The head teacher was so inspired that she bought 44 Tamarind titles for the school and for her charity Red Earth, which trains teachers in Uganda. Through working with Tamarind, Lynne has become excited and equipped to integrate multicultural books across the curriculum. Lynne’s particularly keen to take The Day Rains Fell to Uganda on her next trip, and to take Verna too!

Verna founded Tamarind to address the issue of inclusion in early years education. Her work with schools over 20 years has shown how much personal value children feel when they see themselves reflected in their learning materials.

Feeling inspired?

Why not donate a Tamarind book to an African school through the charity Pelican Post, or flick through our catalogue to see the many curriculum themes our books support.

Tamarind Books staff were swamped at the NUT Black Teachers Conference, selling £400 worth of books in just 30 minutes. Eager teachers were three people deep around the Tamarind stand during the first break of the annual conference at Stoke Rochford Hall in Lincolnshire, with popular titles such as Barack Obama, Malorie Blackman and Benjamin Zephaniah selling out by the end of the day. All 140 delegates also received a Tamarind catalogue as part of their conference pack.

Over 100 books were sold, making it Tamarind’s most successful year as an exhibitor at the event. “Your stand was so popular I thought you were giving the books away for free!” said one teacher later in the day. A testament to the lure of Tamarind…

On Friday and Saturday 16-17th October, Tamarind ran a stand at the annual Special Educational Needs Show in the Business Design Centre, north London. The entire list was on display to the five thousand specialist teachers, carers and consultants who visited for the workshops, seminars and resources at the show.

The Silence Seeker went down particularly well. Several attendees stood round the stand, quietly reading the lyrical story. Many buyers planned to use it for assemblies and class discussions, and to use its stylish, intricate illustrations to encourage interest from reluctant readers of all ages. The friendship without words in the book has special resonance for teachers of children with little English and those focused on social inclusion. Several Tamarind titles feature disabled characters and SEN themes, such as self esteem, inclusion and bullying. The books provide excellent support for SEN practitioners.

Comments on the day included:
“My kids loved Caribbean Animals. They were asking me questions about the animals for ages!”

“I want to buy them for my own children – not just for work.”

“You’re my favourite publisher.”

“The day has been amazing and getting The Silence Seeker is the perfect end.”

On Friday and Saturday 2nd and 3rd October, Tamarind exhibited its list at the annual Times Education Supplement Show. TES is one of the biggest shows for teachers, pre-school practitioners and education decision makers. It provides a great opportunity to get an overview of the education market and meet new buyers. Over 250 books were sold and 450 catalogues given out. Several buyers also signed up for our e-newsletter. Keen buyers had travelled from as far away as Bermuda, South Africa and Saudi Arabia and expressed an interest in purchasing Tamarind books nearer to home.