BBC School Radio: English – Meet the Authors: Listen to Interviews w/ Children’s Book Authors
(www.bbc.co.uk/teach/school-radio/english-meet-the-authors/z7s78xs)
Grades 3-9, with parental supervision
ClickScholar Kimberly Saunders recommended this website that provides access to BBC radio programs on numerous subjects that are designed to support classroom teachers and students
For this review, I focused on interviews with children’s authors that you can listen to as “audio on demand” with Real Player. The authors answer questions posed by students about how they started writing, where they find inspiration for their stories, how they develop characters and storyline, and questions about their plans for future books. Eight prolific authors (who are very popular in the United Kingdom) are featured including:
- Anne Fine
- Eva Ibbotson
- Michael Morpurgo
- Philip Ridley
- Jeremy Strong
- Jacqueline Wilson
- Valerie Bloom
- Brian Patten
When you get to the site, simply click on the author’s name on the menu and a new page opens that launches the interview.
Most are about 20 minutes in length and are sure to engage and inspire young writers.
When you are finished listening to the interviews, use the menu to explore the full catalog of radio programs on subjects such as:
- History
- Math
- Geography
- Music
- Drama
- and more!
Many of the programs are supported by “Teacher’s Notes” in pdf files that you can download for free. They include lesson plans, follow-up activities, and curriculum ideas – as well as links to other resources to enhance learning.
Note: I received error messages when I tried to access some of the radio broadcasts. It was disappointing, but there are enough working links to offset that. :)
