Think about a time when you have worked with a team. Were you successful in what you wanted to accomplish? Funnily enough, I find it harder to write not in verse, though I feel I am now getting the hang of it! My novel THE GIANTS AND THE JONESES is going to be made into a film by the same team who made the Harry Potter movies, and I have written three books of stories about the anarchic PRINCESS MIRROR-BELLE who appears from the mirror and disrupts the life of an otherwise ordinary eight-year-old. I have just finished writing a novel for teenagers. I really enjoy writing verse, even though it can be fiendishly difficult. I used to memorise poems as a child and it means a lot to me when parents tell me their child can recite one of my books. The broom broke when the frog “jumped for joy.” Was it the frog’s fault that the broom broke? Who’s fault was it?

Following the resounding success of my Locus Quest, I faced a dilemma: which reading list to follow it up with? Variety is the spice of life, so I’ve decided to diversify and pursue six different lists simultaneously. This book falls into my BEDTIME STORIES list.

If the animals only helped the witch because they wanted something in return, does this make it a selfish act? Before Malcolm and I had our three sons we used to go busking together and I would write special songs for each country; the best one was in Italian about pasta.

Why did the witch let the animals on her broom? Would you have made room on the broom for the animals? The book was made into an audiobook narrated by Josie Lawrence and adapted for the stage by Tall Stories Theatre Company in 2008, and has toured around the United Kingdom and the rest of the world since then. A really good read-aloud story, with great rhythm, rhyme and repetitive elements. My son is 16 months old, and Room on the Broom is currently his second favourite book - he goes and gets it himself from his book shelf most days, which is really cute. Anyone with small children (and older ones too, I'm sure) will be familiar with Julia Donaldson, in particular The Gruffalo and The Gruffalo's Child, which - along with Room on the Broom - have been made into animated films that regularly show on the ABC. My son, at three, enjoys the books but finds the movies too scary - he's still young like that. The rhymes are wonderful and the characters are lovable. The TV show is so well done that it outshines the book a bit, at least for someone who saw that first and read the book later. They adapted the show faithfully to the work and it fills in many gaps. Still, everything is here in the story, accept that the cat does not want the other animals on the broom. That was added for the show. But the glee of the witch is here with her loyal animals.Admittedly his favourite book in the whole wide world is a bland little story about monkeys - but it does have a button which makes monkey noises when you press it, so I can see the appeal! The kids love this story. They have watched the show over and over and love the book. They both gave the book 5 stars, which might not be fair, but they love it. They can practically recite the lines of the book. Still, it's the first time to read it for all of us. This, archetype-ally, is about the power of the Crone. She cares for others and they become loyal to her. They area force for good. She is not alone after all her children are gone. It's a great representation of that. Literacy: Discover a fab collection of resources to cover Literacy aims, including vocabulary mats, writing frames, and more. One of my television songs, A SQUASH AND A SQUEEZE, was made into a book in 1993, with illustrations by the wonderful Axel Scheffler. It was great to hold the book in my hand without it vanishing in the air the way the songs did. This prompted me to unearth some plays I’d written for a school reading group, and since then I’ve had 20 plays published. Most children love acting and it’s a tremendous way to improve their reading.

I studied Drama and French at Bristol University, where I met Malcolm, a guitar-playing medic to whom I’m now married. My real breakthrough was THE GRUFFALO, again illustrated by Axel. We work separately - he’s in London and I’m in Glasgow - but he sends me letters with lovely funny pictures on the envelopes.

I also continued to write “grown-up” songs and perform them in folk clubs and on the radio, and have recently released two CDs of these songs. At the end of the story, the animals unite to save the witch from the mean dragon. Why did they do this and what made them successful? What does it mean to work on a team? What makes a good team? Questions for Philosophical Discussion Friendship