Non-Fiction for Reading

Many children love to read non-fiction, and given a suitable selection around half of the books primary school children, regardless of gender, choose to read are non-fiction books. A good selection of non-fiction books increases children’s knowledge of the world and also their vocabulary and comprehension. Non-fiction exposes readers to a variety of text structures and features like contents page, glossary, index, captions, diagrams and charts not found in fiction. The contextual information and visual support given in non-fiction texts supports ESL learning and this visual support, a range of attractive formats and the ability to dip in and out is more enticing to reluctant readers. These are just a few reasons to ensure your school library has an up-to-date selection of non-fiction for reading across the curriculum and reading non-fiction for pleasure at all levels! Our banded collections include optional stickers that may be helpful when teachers are drawing a selection of books from the main library to refresh their classroom book corners or to use when studying a curriculum topic.

‘Reading across the curriculum supports the knowledge and vocabulary to be learnt each subject. Each subject has its own purposes and will need different types of texts. They should be accessible and written at an age-appropriate interest level to encourage pupils to learn more about a subject.’

The Reading Framework (DfE 2023)