Children in Years 4 and 5 at St Laurence-in-Thanet CE Junior Academy were lucky enough to have Ramsgate author Peter Erlam pop into school last week.
Peter chatted to the youngsters about his book Ravi the Brainy Raven, which follows the adventures of a courageous raven and is set in Ramsgate. Peter spoke to the children about what inspired him to become an author and how he chose his hero Ravi the Raven to be the main character in some of his books after watching an episode of BBC Springwatch looking at the brainy birds.
The classes learnt about how clever ravens are and how the brave Ravi helped save his friends from danger.
They also found out that even authors get stuck sometimes when they write!
Dr Goldsmith, English and PSHE lead teacher, said: “Having Peter in to discuss the writing process was really interesting for the children, and they could see the hard work and resilience needed to become a published author.
“Not only did it link nicely with our English work in school, but also our focus on deepening the children’s understanding of the different careers open to them when they grow up.”
Peter, a retired journalist, said: “As a relatively new author of junior fiction, I was slightly apprehensive about the response of my target audience. I needn’t have been. The St Laurence children were attentive, engaged and, importantly, were keen to ask me questions about Ravi and the process of writing. It seemed to be endless arms-up! I thoroughly enjoyed it.”
Peter has published two books about the raven’s adventures in Ramsgate, ‘Ravi the Brainy Raven’ and ‘Tales of Tunnel Town’. Contact: [email protected]
My daughter had been gifted Peter’s book by a friend and we then met him by chance at a party. She was absolutely thrilled to meet an author of a book she had read and he was such a lovely, interesting man. I imagine the youngsters at the school today went away equally as impressed! It’s great to see people sharing their talents with children.