Michael Rosen, a recent British Children’s Laureate, has written many acclaimed books for children, including WE'RE GOING ON A BEAR HUNT, illustrated by Helen Oxenbury, and I’M NUMBER ONE and THIS IS OUR HOUSE, both illustrated by Bob Graham. Michael Rosen lives in London. Most of my adult life, I've been a freelance writer, teacher (of sorts), journalist, performer and broadcaster. I visit schools doing my one-man show, and support Arsenal Football Club. Two of the biggest names in children’s publishing, Michael Rosen and Chris Riddell, come together in a new poetry collection. Armistice Day: A Collection of Remembrance - Spark Interest and Educate Children about Historical Moments

A Great Big Cuddle: Poems for the Very Young - AbeBooks A Great Big Cuddle: Poems for the Very Young - AbeBooks

A child’s world with all its details and feelings – toys and games, animals and made-up creatures, likes and dislikes – is vividly conjured up in the most memorable, playful language, and Chris Riddell has produced some his most extraordinary pictures ever to bring this world to life. A collection of beautifully illustrated new poems for toddlers, preschoolers, and anyone who loves having fun with words, A Great Big Cuddle documents the problems and pleasures of being very young. When I read this poem, to me, the phrases have very positive connotations. This is because of the words used such as ‘boing’ and ‘bounce’, making the poem seem happy and therefore enjoyable for both the reader and the audience. The phrases also made me think of words children may use when they are playing such as ‘jump’ and ‘ball’, this will therefore not only be more relatable for the children, but will also help to reinforce this vocabulary. I really like the structure and simplicity of this poem, making it work very well for younger children or as an introduction into poetry for children with little exposure to this form of literature. The simplicity makes it easily understandable which children may enjoy as this is not always the case with poetry. I also really like the use of font, including size and colour, in making the last line of the poem bold and really stand out. This not only brings attention to this line but also shows the emphasis which needs to be added to it when reading aloud. Throughout many of these poems the author uses a range of fonts and text sizes to create emotion and effect. I like these poems because they are effectively illustrated to support the content of the poem e.g. the poem called I am angry, this poem provides the opportunity for children to be able to possibly relate to the poem and learn from it. From the poem I am angry the phrases ‘wake up stones’ and ‘boil words’ are memorable to me because they create a visual image of the authors creative thoughts and messages behind the words. They also portray the emotion of anger through the text format (bold font).Children’s Laureates Chris Riddell and Michael Rosen combine here to create a beautiful collection of ebullient poems for the very young. Michael Rosen’s close and affectionate observation of small children and the way they think is brilliantly captured in poems such as You Can’t See Me and Let Me Do It. There are also plenty of opportunities for the very young to join in with poems such as Tippy-Tappy and The Button Bop which they are guaranteed to want to hear again and again! Chris Riddell’s illustrations created an equally warm-hearted view of the early years and capture the spirit of the poems perfectly. I have loved exploring these poems with George who was 2 in May. He loves stories and that special time you get together when we read. He has been exploring sounds and words a lot lately and loves to watch your mouth when you make noises or sounds and any increased expression or intonation so these are perfect for him to join in with. His favourites are 'Boing! Boing!' where he bounces with me pounces and then does an impressive roar. He loves the finger play in 'Finger story' as well as the brilliant accompanying image which he notices every time. The poem has lots of actions and it finishes with bed so George can pretend to fall asleep which he loves doing with accompanying snores.' Our Writer in Residence and former Children's Laureate Michael Rosen's best books for little ones aged 0 to 5 - we highly recommend reading his brilliant poems aloud together for lots of fun! After sharing Boing Boing children can try to roll up like a ball or pounce like a tiger. Wiggly Wiggly will encourage lots of delightful wiggling, jiggling and giggling. What is interesting to me here is that in terms of age of the reader, Rosen isn’t limiting himself solely to toddlers. There are a couple poems in here that preschoolers would probably appreciate more than their drooling, babbling brethren. “I Am Hungry”, for example, stars a hungry bear listing everything he could eat at this moment (both the usual fare and unusual selections like “A funny joke” or “The sound of yes”) ending with “Then I’ll eat me” which is just the right level of ridiculousness to amuse the canny four-year-old. And “Don’t Squash” is going to ramp up the silly levels pretty effectively when a splatter happy elephant is instructed not to squash her toes, nose, a bun, the sun, cars, stars, a fly, or the very sky.

Oh Dear | Centre for Literacy in Primary Education - CLPE

We took this book away with us over the summer and it was lovely to see older children getting enjoyment out of it too. They love to read aloud, and this was perfect, the younger children didn’t need to sit and listen for long, they could join in and the older children loved performing the poems as well.'I have often written about my life and family, but I also write occasional fantasy (usually based in a real place) and non-fiction. Michael Rosen is a hugely bestselling author of picture books and poetry. Michael frequently appears on radio and gives talks and lectures on children’s literature. Michael was the Children’s Laureate for 2007–2009 and the winner of the Eleanor Farjeon Award. He lives in London.

A Great Big Cuddle by Michael Rosen, illustrated by Chris A Great Big Cuddle by Michael Rosen, illustrated by Chris

From re-invented fairy tales to classics from Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy, here are some poetry books your child is sure to love and want to read out loud. In a perfect introduction to poetry Rosen starts with a cornucopia of tongue twisters and nonsense rhymes and ends with soothing verses to send even the most energetic child off to sleep. Paired with Riddell's bold and beautiful illustrations you will have lots of fun reading this out loud. A great present for all occasions." --South Wales Evening Post Here are some videos of me performing poems from my book, A Great Big Cuddle, with pictures by Chris Riddell, published by Walker Books.

Shortlisted for the CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal 2017 | Joint Winner of the CLiPPA 2016 (CLPE Children’s Poetry Award).

A Great Big Cuddle | Michael Rosen

I enjoyed many of the poems in this large book with fun illustrations, but some of the poems I just didn't get. I mean, I'm not the audience they were written for so many that's part of it, but I'd like to think that I'm still very much a kid at heart and I read a lot of kids' books, so I don't think that's a full explanation. The poem uses rhyming and repetition through the phases ‘bounce bounce’ and ‘pounce pounce’. This creates speed as you read the poem as well as reiteration of these important words. The lines in this poem are also very short and most of the words are repeated making it very accessible to younger children just beginning to look at poetry including those in the Foundation State and early KS1.On the fence over this one. I love how different and silly it is, but I'm not sure all the poems are good. I'm not much of a poem guy, so I'd love a second opinion, like from Adrienne. I do know that this is the creepiest toddler poem I've ever read, and I LOVE it: This is a great poetry anthology for younger children. Could be used in the Foundation Stage and some would be suitable for lower KS1. There are a range of different poems in this book which differ by length and style making it a great anthology for a primary school where the children are likely to have different tastes and abilities. The use of illustration and the size, font and colour of the text makes the poems even more enjoyable to read and look at. Overall, a lovely anthology which I would definitely use with children in the earlier years of primary school. Matt Carr’s sweet picture book is a useful one for little ones and would be perfect at school or at home as a fun reminder to wash our hands and keep nasty germs away. The poem is positioned in quite an unusual way, starting in the top left-hand corner and progressing diagonally downwards to the bottom right-hand corner. The way that each verse is positioned encourages the reader to speed up when reading bringing purposeful tension to the poem. There is also an effect of each verse and accompanying illustration getting closer as the poem progresses, which gives the same effect. Apart from the use of repetition, the main techniques in this poem come from the layout and illustrations. For this poem the illustrations are very powerful as they help to paint a picture of the tiger’s journey. At the beginning of the poem when the phrase ‘bounce bounce’ is used, the tiger is portrayed through the illustrations as an infant who is quite unsure and anxious. The poem then develops to use the phrase ‘pounce pounce’ in replace of ‘bounce bounce’, as this happens, the tiger is displayed by the illustrations in a much more confident and grown-up way. The illustrations therefore help hugely with deepening the development of the poem.