When I was approached by Nikki Gamble to create a guide to using 'Breathe' in the classroom, my first thought went to the bookmarks that I have been creating these past 10 years. The bookmarks are designed to promote good reading and thinking skills within the curriculum: 'Booktalk' as Chambers would say. I came up with the idea of creating a set of bookmarks many years ago at college with some friends. When I was working with my first class I have organised a set of parents to come in and help read in groups. Rather than just allowing parents to listen to the child decode the words off the page, I created the bookmarks to help promote discussion. I always used to joke with them that when I read with my group for an hour, we found ourselves reading for about 15-20 minutes of it and talking for about 45 minutes throughout.
I am a firm believer that many books out there, especially for children, have an awful lot to offer. They allow us to look into situations that may or may not reflect our own thoughts and experiences. With Cliff's 'Breathe' I adopted this approach again but concentrated on how the book would also help the children write good ghost stories.
I would never presume to use every single question that is on the bookmark. This could end up having a negative effect indeed. The last thing I want to do is pull Cliff's book apart and lose the enjoyment of the story. Let us not forget, however, that this book is here is serve a purpose. It is an excellent rendition of a ghost story and one that the children can learn a lot from in terms of technique and style as well as appreciating plot and the elements that go into writing a cracking ghost story.
We haven't even begun to read the book yet. Instead, I wanted to prove to you, the reader, that the bookmarks can heighten discussion and, as one of my own pupils points out, 'open up..imagination.' The first piece of discussion we had involved me blowing up the front cover onto the IWB (Interactive Whiteboard) and asking the children to note down in their Reading Journals what they notice about the front cover.
When they had accomplished this, I then began asking questions, using the bookmarks as a guide to refresh my memory. We spoke a lot about the font, the character, the fact that judging books by their cover is just in our nature and after a whole class discussion I was blown away by what they came up with. Many of the children had decided that the girl in the photo was wearing old clothes and was from the distant past. They had decided that the wooden frame was the back door of an abandoned cottage and that the font has a big impact in promoting the style of the book. Below I have attached one table's comments on the cover. I have made no amendments. I shall endeavor to add other comments made as we make our way through the book:
PB (A Reluctant Reader)
Comment in Reading Journal without any teacher-led questions asked:
‘All you know is that there is a ghost that looks like it is a girl. It is in black and white so I think it might be set in the past. Ancient.’
After a whole-class chat about the cover, using the first bookmark as a guide:
‘If I saw Breathe in a book shop I would probably buy it but first I would ask around and see if anyone recommended it because it has such a spooky cover. I can see a ghost through a window which seems to have been breathed on. I think that the person in the window is a teenage girl’
JS (A confident reader stuck in a particular genre)
Comment in Reading Journal without any teacher-led questions asked:
‘Who is the girl in the window? I think it is a ghost. I think this will be about a family of ghosts stuck in a house until the truth has been revealed.’
After a whole-class chat about the cover, using the first bookmark as a guide:
‘I think the person in the window is a ghost of someone killed in the house who wants their revenge. I think the genre is ghost mystery. I think the front title is really intriguing and unusual. It works really well. I think blood (teacher note: dripping from the words like in the proof-copy of the book) would give the wrong impression of the book. Horror and ghost stories are very different. (Teacher Note: JS then draws a table in his book stating that Horror has ‘Blood, Guts and is Scary’ and Ghost has no blood and guts but can be scary). If I saw this book in the book shop I would buy it because it sounds really good and has already been recommended to me by you (Mr. T)
EQ (Confident reader who is open to a broad reading range – with guidance)
Comment in Reading Journal without any teacher-led questions asked:
‘Who is the girl? Why is she here? Where is she? What is it about? Is the thing in front a window or a door? Will I like this book? Is it gonna be sad, scary or happy? Why does it have a lack of colour? Why is it called ‘Breathe’ if it’s a book about ghosts?
After a whole-class chat about the cover, using the first bookmark as a guide:
‘I can see: A middle teenage girl, an old, wooden window door and a title that looks as if it has been breathed on the window and rubbed on the glass. I would definitely buy this book because the cover is really intriguing and loads of questions go through your head. I am also going to like this book because it is mystery-ghost. I REALLY love ghost stories as well because mysteries always ask questions about what it is about. The font helps too. Without blood is better for ghost stories because it isn’t about gore, it’s about deepness and help. These questions (Teacher: EQ refers to my bookmarks) have opened up my imagination with more questions.
MB (Confident reader who is open to a broad reading range – with guidance)
Comment in Reading Journal without any teacher-led questions asked:
‘Where is the scene on the cover? Who is the figure in the background? Abandoned house? Author: Cliff McNish. Colour Scheme: Black + White.’
After a whole-class chat about the cover, using the first bookmark as a guide:
‘I would buy this book because it intrigues me to find out more about the person in the window. I think the character in the window is the ghost of someone long-gone dead. I think this is the ghost genre because it says it on the cover. Red blood would not go well with the black and white cover. This font has a ghosty touch to it. A horror story has an immense amount of gore in it. A ghost story doesn’t have a lot of gore.’
Hopefully this gives you an idea of what the bookmarks are capable of. Throughout my teaching I have seen the bookmarks make a huge impact on the reading of all children. They turn them from passive, decoders to imaginative, reflective readers who are contuinally looking beyond the text.
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