Spring and Summer 2026 book recommendations for the full primary age-range

Take a look at the latest round-up of high-quality books suitable for children across the primary age-range, expertly curated by Joy Court. This edition focuses on Spring 2026 and includes recommended titles for the following categories:

• Early Years Foundation Stage

• Key Stage 1

• Lower Key Stage 2

• Upper Key Stage 2

Joy's choices are carefully selected to engage young readers and support their learning across various subjects and themes and to promote reading for pleasure.

You can download this resource FREE of charge to explore Joy's top picks for 2026. Additionally, you may find her previous recommendations essential for continuing your reading for pleasure journey.

Assess Spoken Language is a suite of materials designed to support the assessment of children’s spoken language skills. The resource includes:

• detailed descriptors of the spoken language typical for each year group

• quick glance Assessment for Learning grids

• whole class grids for identifying trends and gaps.

It is complementary to the Primary English Progression in Spoken Language resource, and like that document takes the 12 spoken language objectives from the national curriculum and breaks them down into small steps.

This resource is based on the national curriculum and so covers Y1 - Y6.

Starting Points are written to help you plan book-based units of work. In this set based on Arthur and the Golden Rope by Joe Todd-Stanton. you’ll find ideas to support spoken language, reading, writing, grammar, vocabulary and spelling. This Starting Points resource will give you everything you need to plan a beautiful book-based unit of work for children in Year 3 and Year 4.

In this set of Starting Points, you will find planning to support the following grammar objectives:

• Word families based on common nouns

• Expressing time, place and cause using adverbs and prepositions

• Use of the present perfect form of verbs

• The use of direct speech

• Noun phrases expanded by the addition of modifying adjectives, nouns and preposition phrases

• Fronted adverbials

• Appropriate choice of noun and pronoun

• Use of commas after fronted adverbials.

In this pack you will find the following resources:

• Expanded Noun Phrase teaching slides

• Expanded Noun Phase activity

• Prepositions pack

• Word builder activity

• Quest story checklist

Starting Points are sets of book-based planning ideas. The books are not included in the packs.

This teaching sequence focuses on the skills of fluency, vocabulary and retrieval whilst also drawing in other skills relevant to the reading aspect of the national curriculum. The teaching sequence covers approximately two and a half weeks of reading sessions with time to allocate additional tasks to children. Discussion points are suggested throughout and where possible answers have been provided to support the teaching. We have indicated key vocabulary that you may want to explore with children before reading, during reading or after the text has been read.

This teaching sequence pack includes:

· Detailed lesson outlines

· Weekly comprehension quick quizzes

· A set of SAT style comprehension questions

· A wordsearch of key words from the text

· Summarising the Story sheet

· Theme Tokens

· A book recommendation sheet

We’ve pitched this planning at children in Year 3.

This teaching sequence focuses on the range of reading skills outlined in the national curriculum for children in key stage 2 including inferring meaning from what is stated and implied, understanding the words chosen by an author and how they impact on the effectiveness of a text as well as plentiful opportunities to practise reading fluently. The teaching sequence covers each chapter of the book. Discussion points are suggested throughout and where possible answers have been provided to support the teaching. We have indicated key vocabulary that you may want to explore with children before reading, during reading or after the text has been read.

Contents

This teaching sequence includes:

• Detailed lesson outlines

• Character name cards

• Figurative language grid

• Chapter summary sheet

• Character Study photocopiable master

• My thoughts/Author’s thoughts photocopiable master

• Role on the Wall photocopiable master

• Book Review photocopiable master

• Definition cards (for Chapter 7 vocabulary work)

• Place names cards

• Fireworks cards (fictional fireworks from the story)

We recommend this pack for use with children across key stage 2.

(Not included in this pack: copies of The Firework-Maker’s Daughter by Philip Pullman)

UPDATED AND IMPROVED

This teaching sequence focuses primarily on the key skills of inference, retrieval and vocabulary. The teaching sequence covers 20 taught sessions with the flexibility to add up to 5 additional sessions if required. Throughout the sequence, you will find extension and support activities, independent reading tasks and a range of creative activities based on the text. Where possible, example answers have been provided to support the teaching and learning.

Contents

• A detailed teaching sequence with questions, answers and prompts for daily lessons

• A photocopiable Role on the Wall resources

• A Zone of Relevance resource

• A set of Quick Quiz comprehension questions for each week of the sequence

Not included in this pack copies of Kensuke’s Kingdom ISBN: 978-1405221740

We’ve pitched this planning at children in Year 5 and Year 6.

This teaching sequence focuses primarily on the key skills of inference, retrieval and vocabulary. The teaching sequence covers 20 taught sessions with the flexibility to add up to 5 additional sessions if required. Throughout the sequence, you will find extension and support activities, independent reading tasks and a range of creative activities based on the text. Where possible, example answers have been provided to support the teaching and learning.

Contents

• A detailed teaching sequence with questions, answers and prompts for daily lessons

• Weekly comprehension quick quizzes with answers

• A photocopiable Role on the Wall sheet

We’ve pitched this planning at children in Year 5 and Year 6.

Starting Points are written to help you plan book-based units of work. In this set based on The Rhythm of the Rain by Grahame Baker-Smith you’ll find ideas to support spoken language, reading, writing, grammar, vocabulary and spelling. This Starting Points resource will give you everything you need to plan a beautiful book-based unit of work for children in Year 3 and Year 4.

In this set of Starting Points you will find ideas to support the following grammar objectives:

• Revision of present and past tense (present tense)

• Perfect form of verbs

• Prepositions and adverbials used to indicate where, when and how

• Noun phrases for description and specification

• Cohesion created through the use of nouns and pronouns

Also included are:

• Vocabulary cards

• Prepositions and prepositional phrases cards

• Homophones cards

• A diamante poem example

Starting Points are sets of book-based planning ideas. The books are not included in the packs.

Starting Points are written to help you plan book-based units of work. In this set based on Shackleton’s Journey by William Grill you’ll find ideas to support spoken language, reading, writing, grammar, vocabulary and spelling. This Starting Points resource will give you everything you need to plan a beautiful book-based unit of work for children in Year 5 and Year 6.

In additional to extensive ideas to support reading, this set of Starting Points also includes suggestions to teach the following grammar objectives:

• Passive voice including the agentless passive

• Indicating degrees of possibility using modal verbs and adverbs of possibility

• Use of dashes to mark the boundary between independent clauses

• How hyphens can be used to avoid ambiguity

• Use of cohesive devices such as repetition of a word or phrase and the effective use of nouns and pronouns

• The use of adverbials to build cohesion within paragraphs

• The use of the perfect form of verbs

• Brackets used for parenthesis

• The use of expanded noun phrases to add detail

• The use of relative clauses to add further information

• The use of adverbials (including fronted adverbials)

The following resources are included in this pack:

• Adverbials sorting table

• Cut out theme tokens

• Passive and agentless passive teaching slides

• Role on the Wall sheet

• Y5 and Y6 Statutory words

Starting Points are sets of book-based planning ideas. The books are not included in the packs.

This teaching sequence focuses on the skills of predicting and reading with fluency whilst also drawing in other skills relevant to the reading aspect of the national curriculum. The teaching sequence covers approximately three and a half weeks of reading sessions with time to allocate additional tasks to children. Discussion points are suggested throughout and where possible answers have been provided to support the teaching. We have indicated key vocabulary that you may want to explore with children before reading, during reading or after the text has been read.

This teaching sequence pack includes:

· Detailed lesson outlines

· Weekly comprehension Quick Quizzes

· My Thoughts/Author’s Thoughts photocopiable master

· Book Review photocopiable master

· Tell Me graphic organiser

· The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me vocabulary wordsearch

This is a truly creative set of planning that will delight you and your children.

We’ve pitched this planning at children in Year 3 and Year 4.

In this set of Starting Points based on The Owl Who Was Afraid of the Dark by Jill Tomlinson you’ll find ideas to support spoken language, reading, writing, grammar, vocabulary and spelling. This Starting Points resource will give you everything you need to plan a beautiful book-based unit of work for children in KS1.

In this set of Starting Points we have planned for the following grammar learning:

• Formation of nouns by compounding

• Subordination and co-ordination

• Expanded noun phrases for description and specification

• How the grammatical patterns in a sentence indicate its function as a statement, question, exclamation or command

• Use of capital letters, full stops, question marks and exclamation marks to demarcate sentences

• Apostrophes to mark where letters are missing in spelling.

In this pack we have included the following resources:

• Apostrophe’s for omission activity

• Compound words cards

• Conjunctions cards activity

• Emotion graph

• Factfile paper

• Turn up the Volume sheet

• Year 2 Common Exception Words cards

Starting Points are sets of book-based planning ideas. The books are not included in the packs.

The Primary English Progression in Spoken Language document has been created to help teachers plan progressive and age-appropriate spoken language experiences for their classes. The document takes the twelve spoken language objectives from the National Curriculum and breaks them down into progressive steps covering Years 1 – 6. Each year group objective is supported by exemplified language examples and classroom practice that are likely to occur in each year group.

In addition to progression across each objective, each year group has its own at a glance page where teachers can see what spoken language looks like in their year group.

The Primary English Progression in Grammar and Punctuation document has been created to give teachers a simple view of the teaching order of grammar and punctuation in KS1 and KS2 by taking the grammar and punctuation objectives from the National Curriculum and presenting them in an easy to view format.

This document includes progression in cohesion and is supported by our Cohesion Roadmap.

Starting Points are written to help you plan book-based units of work. In this set based on Katie Morag Delivers the Mail by Mairi Hedderwick you’ll find ideas to support spoken language, reading, writing, grammar, vocabulary and spelling. This Starting Points resource will give you everything you need to plan a beautiful book-based unit of work for children in KS1.

Grammar and sentence objectives covered in this planning include:

• Formation of nouns by compounding

• How the grammatical patterns in a sentence indicate its function (questions)

• Co-ordination and Subordination

• Expanded noun phrases

• Correct choice and consistent use of present tense and past tense through writing

• Use of capital letters and full stops to demarcate sentences

• Apostrophes to mark where letters are missing

• Prepositions to indicate direction and location

In this pack, we have included the following resources:

• Apostrophes for omission cards

• Compound word cards

• Conjunctions cards

• Emotion graph

• Past tense versb activity

• Preposition pack

• Role on the Wall sheet

• Y2 Common Exception words

Starting Points are sets of book-based planning ideas. The books are not included in the packs.

Starting Points are written to help you plan book-based units of work. In this set based on Grandad’s Secret Giant by David Litchfield, you’ll find ideas to support spoken language, reading, writing, grammar, vocabulary and spelling. This Starting Points resource will give you everything you need to plan a beautiful book-based unit of work for children in Year 2.

In this set of Starting Points, you will find planning to support the following grammar objectives:

Year 2

• How the grammatical patterns in a sentence indicate its function as a statement, question, exclamation or command

• Correct choice and consistent use of present tense and past tense throughout writing

• Use of capital letters, full stops, question marks and exclamation marks to demarcate sentences

• Apostrophes to mark where letters are missing in spelling.

Starting Points are sets of book-based planning ideas. The books are not included in the packs.

This pack was requested by a Primary English customer. If you’d like us to collate planning ideas for a book you’d like to use, please drop us a line.

Starting Points are written to help you plan book-based units of work. In this set based on Antony and Cleopatra: A Shakespeare Story by Andrew Matthews and Tony Ross, you’ll find ideas to support spoken language, reading, writing, grammar, vocabulary and spelling. This Starting Points resource will give you everything you need to plan a beautiful book-based unit of work for children in Year 3 and Year 4.

In this set of Starting Points, you will find ideas to support the following grammar objectives:

• Use of fronted adverbials

• Use of paragraphs to organise ideas around a theme

• Appropriate choice of pronoun or noun within and across sentences

• Write dialogue with correctly punctuated direct speech

• Use of commas after fronted adverbials

Starting Points are sets of book-based planning ideas. The books are not included in the packs.

A bundle of easy to use assessment grids for making medium-term assessments of children’s writing in years 1 - 6. The grids take the national curriculum objectives for writing and present them in a manageable and logical format. Displayed in a term by term format, teachers can record children’s attainment at different points of the year. The objectives are broken down into smaller steps to allow children to move from novice to expert levels of knowledge over the year. Example words and phrases are used to clarify the meaning of many of the objectives and key words such as some, begins, many, can, understands and effectively are used to indicate the level of understanding of the children.

Created by our expert team, and trialled in real classrooms, we think you’ll love the Primary English Writing Assessment Grids.

Starting Points are written to help you plan book-based units of work. In this set based on Beegu by Alexis Deacon you’ll find ideas to support spoken language, reading, writing, grammar, vocabulary and spelling. This Starting Points resource will give you everything you need to plan a beautiful book-based unit of work for children in Year 2.

In this set of Starting Points, you will find planning to support the following grammar objectives:

• Formation of adjectives using suffixes such as –ful

• Use of the suffix –ly in Standard English to turn adjectives into adverbs

• Subordination (using when, if, that, because) and co-ordination (using or, and, but)

• Correct choice and consistent use of present tense and past tense throughout writing

• Use of capital letters, full stops, question marks and exclamation marks to demarcate sentences

• Apostrophes to mark where letters are missing in spelling

In this pack we have included the following resources:

• Adding -ed resource

• Apostrophes for omission resources

• Emotion Graph

• Home Away Home planing sheet

• Subordinate conjunctions activity

• Year 2 Common Exception Words

Starting Points are sets of book-based planning ideas. The books are not included in the packs.

About this resource

This teaching sequence focuses on sequencing. It is intended that there are sufficient activities in this teaching sequence to engage your children in meaningful learning for one week of guided reading lessons.

This teaching sequence includes:

• A guided reading lesson plan in an editable word document format

• Winter Images Resource

• Sequenced Pictures Resource

• A writing template for an independent writing activity

• A photocopiable set of comprehension questions for independent or teacher/ TA supported work

• A wordsearch suitable for independent work

(Resources not included in this pack: sufficient copies of Snow by Sam Usher for your guided reading group)

We’ve pitched this planning at children in Year 1 and Year 2.

Starting Points are written to help you plan book-based units of work. In this set based on Here Comes Jack Frost by Kazuno Kohara you’ll find ideas to support spoken language, reading, writing, grammar, vocabulary and spelling.  This Starting Points resource will give you everything you need to plan a beautiful book-based unit of work for children in Year 1.  

In this set of Starting Points we have suggested teaching ideas to support the following grammar learning:

• Sequencing sentences to form short narratives

• Separation of words with spaces

• Introduction to capital letters, full stops, question marks and exclamation marks to demarcate sentences

• Joining words and joining clauses using and

• Capital letters for names

The following resources are included in this pack:

Joining sentences with and sheet

• Capital letters for proper nouns sheet

• Compound words cards

• Senses boad

• Starting Points planning ideas

Starting Points are sets of book-based planning ideas. The books are not included in the packs.

This pack includes:

• Winter vocabulary in flashcard format.

• Winter vocabulary in word mat format.