Club Author Day

On Friday, October 21, children from Newtown Primary School gathered at St James Park to take part in a fun-filled literacy event with author Will Mabbitt. The exciting activities and workshops used children’s love of football to motivate them to read.  

At the event 44 children took part in a whole host of activities, including Dodgeball, Handball and, of course, football.  

The children were also treated with a tour of the stadium, and the Exeter City Football Club Museum, to stir the imagination before a workshop with Mabel Jones creator, Will Mabbitt.  

In the workshop, the groups were invited in to learn about the process Will goes through to creates his characters, before turning their hand at creating their own sporting literary character.  

The club author day was run by the Premier League and the National Literacy Trust to celebrate the efforts of children who have taken part in the Premier League Primary Stars programme, which uses the power of football to inspire primary school children to read and write.  

Reflecting on the day, Will said: “We had a fantastic day here in the magnificent St James Park; exploring the stadium and also how to create our own characters by sharing ideas and getting them onto the page, which is the most important thing for all writers, no matter what age. It’s been a lot of fun and so good to see children engaging with all kinds of positive activities “ 

“We have been designing ‘Football Animals,’ exploring their personalities, belongings and using those characters to tell stories. We have been getting as many ideas out of our heads and on to paper, building ingredients to tell stories and having fun with the process.

Exeter City Football Club is one of over 100 Premier League and English Football League clubs taking part in Premier League Primary Stars. The programme includes Premier League Reading Stars, a reading intervention developed by the National Literacy Trust and the Premier League which has been proven to increase children’s reading levels by up to one year in just 10 weeks. 

Jim Sells, Programme Manager at the National Literacy Trust, said: “We know from our research and decades of experience that reading for enjoyment improves children’s chances of success in school and in life. Tapping into their interests helps to build this love of reading, which is why we use the motivational power of football to get children, especially struggling readers, into reading. By bringing together local authors and football clubs, we are taking an important step towards inspiring a love of reading in children that will benefit them for a lifetime.” 

For more information about Premier League Primary Stars and to sign-up, visit: www.plprimarystars.com