Like many secondary school teachers, Jones worries that boys aged between 11 and 14 in particular can struggle with reading. The most recent Sats tests – the national assessments taken by Year 6 pupils – show that just 60 per cent of boys reached the expected standards in maths, reading and writing – compared with 70 per cent of girls. And it’s getting worse for boys, with the proportion reaching the expected standard in reading dipping to 69 per cent in 2019 from 72 per cent the previous year. Alex Bellos and Ben Lyttleton, the authors of the Football School books Supporters can easily become obsessed by tactics and formations. Whether the “diamond” trumps the “ false nine” or whether 4-3-3 is just 4-5-1 with lazier forwards? And for those who (pre-Covid) lived for those never-ending pub arguments with no hope of resolution, this book is their bible. Although it stops short of explaining the theory of the ‘67th-minute’ goal. That’s explored in detail in There’s Only One Danny Garvey.

If you're trying to entice football-mad children into reading, look no further than the Football School series from Alex Bellos And Ben Lyttleton, which feature football-related facts across subjects from maths and science to history and geography. With a World Book Day title under their belts, publisher Walker Books has launched the latest title in the Football School series - Terrific Teams. This is a brilliant book for finding out why good teamwork matters, and for young football fans to find out about their favourite teams. Alex - The most important thing about our books is that they are entertaining and fun to read. But also we wanted to make sure that children are learning stuff they don't know, from basic facts like capital cities and national flags to important events in global history. So once we find a fantastic fact we work out the best way to present that fact in a humorous and educational way. Coffee house Caffè Nero has announced the 16-strong shortlist for the inaugural Nero Book Awards, recognising the outstanding books of the past 12...Dapo Adeola, Tracy Darnton, Joseph Coelho and Chitra Soundar are among the 19 authors and illustrators longlisted for the Inclusive Books for Child... Football clubs help them to ferret out fresh snippets. “We find we get better access when we tell them we’re writing for kids because they appreciate what we are trying to do.” Football as an arena for learning Ben - I was once asked to do a floss. I didn't know what it was then (of course I do now) and it did not end well for me! My new novel There’s Only One Danny Garvey is set in 1996. It is a book set in a footballing context, but it isn’t a book about football. Just as The Damned United (listed below) is a book that examines, through a stream-of-consciousness narrative, the obsessions of a man being played out in an often-illogical, unforgiving, alpha male-dominated environment. There’s a lot more than a simple game at stake. Alex - Football is the perfect hook to get kids reading because it is a subject they want to read about. And it enables us to include education by stealth. By linking everything to football we can show how in the real world everything is connected. Also, we are friends and we wanted to work together!

How do you go about finding your facts for the Football School books and how do you research all the facts? Peace’s masterful novel depicting the 44-day tenure of Brian Clough as manager of Leeds United depicts how his paranoia and loneliness (and irrationality) grow with his increasing isolation. Insomnia takes hold and the Clough of the novel struggles to understand why the skills and practices that made him a brilliant football player – prior to career-ending injury – and then a mercurial manager, have apparently deserted him.

Activity Sheets

Ben - We are both parents and are passionate about helping kids develop a love of reading and a curiosity about the world. I would have loved to have read these books as a child, because the only time I was not talking or thinking about football was during lessons. In Football School, every lesson is about football AND you are learning about the world. It's a win-win! Season 1 was runner up in the Blue Peter Book Awards. Season 2 was shortlisted in the Lollies, for funniest non-fiction book of the year.

En Lyttleton is an author, broadcaster and consultant to professional football clubs. He has written for The Guardian, Sunday Times, Newsweek and TIME International. His work has been syndicated in over 20 countries. He is the author of Twelve Yards: The Art and Psychology of the Perfect Penalty and he advises top clubs and national teams on how to improve their penalty-taking skills. His new book is Edge: Leadership Secrets from Football's Top Thinkers. He lives in London. Bestselling author Alexandra Christo, author of TikTok sensation To Kill a Kingdom, introduces her new book, The Night Hunt (Hot Key Books), a dark...SEASON 3: The biology of the foot, football fashion, the chemistry of pitch markings, the physics of why short dribblers are better than tall ones, the greenest club in the world, a history of Spanish football, why football was invented in Sheffield, and more. BUY Books compete with the Xbox and similar things where they’re getting entertainment instantly,” says Jones. “The Football School books are about showing pupils you can have the same level of enjoyment from reading.” Alex - Celebrating Brazil win the 2002 World Cup with tens of thousands of Brazilians on a sunny morning on Copacabana beach. (The game was in Tokyo) How do you decide what to include and what to leave out? Do you always agree on what should go in the book, as you work collaboratively? Research shows that getting authors to visit pays off for schools, helping to boost reading levels, confidence and enjoyment. A recent report by the National Literacy Trust found that twice as many young people could read above the expected level for their age at schools which invited authors to visit, compared with peers at schools that didn’t bother.

SEASON 2: The biology of footballers’ urine, why footballs are not perfectly round, the origin of the word football, the history of women’s football, how to build a football stadium, gathering football data, the symbolism of crests, and more. BUY Alex - I loved playing football but was never good enough to play for the school team. As a budding mathematician I always saw my best move as the precise geometrical pass. In the assembly, geography and culture follow the biology lesson. Lyttleton, who is clutching a football, argues that Brazil’s flair for the sport is down to its climate and penchant for samba. “Many Brazilians learn to play football on the beach, and if you can master that then you can be brilliant playing on a nice flat surface. Plus, when Brazilians are dribbling, they’re essentially dancing the samba, because samba involves wiggling your hips a lot and keeping your upper body very still.” You can watch Ben Lyttleton answering questions about the Football School series here on ReadingZone Live: Author Anna Kemp introduces The Hollow Hills, the sequel to her dark magical tale, Into Goblyn Wood.

My sometime colleagues from Nutmeg magazine have produced a beautiful, evocative, gritty love-letter to the Scottish game. Daniel’s poetic descriptions and Alan’s alluring photographs capture the attraction of football at all levels, but the book is especially affecting when they visit grounds where the players voices can be heard over the fans on the terracing. SEASON 1: The biology of footballers’ poo, the geography of Brazil and why it produces such skilful players, the psychology of penalty taking, the philosophy of Johan Cruyff, the physics of playing football on Mars, and more. BUY Ben - We don't always agree and that's the joy of working with someone else. Alex constantly challenges and encourages me to come up with good content, and I (hopefully) do the same with him. We know that the other person can often improve our work, and that helps us be creative in the first place.