Wednesday April 2nd 2025

Dear Diary,

Today, I returned to Finlay Community Primary School, where I received a wonderfully warm welcome from all the students and staff. My thirty-minute assembly was followed by a workshop for Year 4, and I was amazed by the speed at which these pupils worked! So many certificates were handed out. But of all the super stories, poems, raps, diary entries, and letters that were produced, I particularly loved Lileth’s stories. Her imagination was on fire today:

Emelia’s story also really stood out:

And I thought Zaid’s story was brilliantly written:

My next session was for Year 5. Once again, the pupils really impressed me with their imaginations and their ability to get their ideas down on paper quickly. But I especially enjoyed Riyadh’s story which began:

Have you ever wondered what would happen if dragons and zombies (if they existed) went to war?

I thought Henry had a super imagination, too:

My following workshop for Year 3 was also full of aspiring authors and diligent, hardworking students. Many more certificates were awarded, but my favourite pieces of work during this session would have to be Rose’s brilliant poem:

… and Hamzah’s story written under the title Dragon Farts vs Zombie Farts:

But after lunch, things really ramped up a gear, when it came to my workshop for Year 6. If I’d been impressed by the younger pupils at Finlay, then I was absolutely blown away by the students in this year group!!! The work they produced was without a doubt some of the best I’ve come across over the past year. And it wasn’t just one or two pupils who were impressive… it was EVERYONE! And there were two absolutely stand-out pieces of work produced, so I ended up giving out dragon prizes to both Alfred in 6L for his fantastic poem:

… and to Mason in 6S for his story about a dragon hiding under the bed:

That was the day he saw it. A long, scaly tail. It slithered behind a box of old toys. Jenson Bruno slid aside the box, and his jaw dropped. A small, scared looking baby dragon – big enough to fit in his hand – looked at him in fright. It let out a small squeak. Jenson burst out the door of his room; ran down the stairs, sending his poor gran flying; wrenched open the fridge, smacking his brother in the nose; grabbed a chunk of sausage and a knife; cut the sausage (almost taking off his fingers in the process); and took it back to his bedroom to the dragon. It stood exactly where it was, frozen like a garden statue…

The speed at which Alfred produced poetry was phenomenal. His poem went on for pages and pages! And I thought Mason’s writing was extremely mature and well thought out. It wouldn’t surprise me if both boys go on to have books of their own published in the future!

It was so wonderful to return to Finlay today. I went there to inspire all the students, but I ended up being inspired by all of them!!! And at home time, I had some super Year 3 helpers to assist me with handing out free stickers and bookmarks and selling signed copies of my books – including cheerfully chatty Rose (who wrote the lovely poem earlier). Rose was fairly new to the school, and hadn’t met me before. But she was the first to purchase a copy of both of my books, so I hope she (along with everyone else who bought one) enjoys my writing!