Year 6 blog:

It was a real privilege to meet Ele Fountain, author of Boy 87, during our visit to Mansel Park today.

Ele read powerful extracts from Boy 87 and spoke to pupils about the journey of the book; from the first idea, through the writing process, to publishing and sharing the story with the world. Pupils were fascinated to learn what life is really like for an author and how much dedication and hard work goes on behind the scenes.

Through her storytelling, we also learned a great deal about the displacement of refugees, particularly children. This was especially meaningful for our pupils as we are an accredited School of Sanctuary, and the themes of compassion, empathy and justice strongly link to our learning and the work we do in school linked to Global Goal 10, reducing inequalities. 

Ele spoke honestly about the importance of perseverance, resilience, and having the courage to dare to follow your dreams, even when the journey is challenging. Her message encouraged pupils to keep going, believe in themselves, and use their voices to make a difference.

We were absolutely thrilled to have our photograph taken with Ele and to meet someone whose writing has had such a powerful impact on children's literature! It was a memorable experience that will stay with us and continue to inspire our writing and learning.

A huge thank you to Ele Fountain for such an engaging and thought-provoking visit.