Note on Methodology   

In 2016 and 2017, we collected data from two evaluation primaries and one secondary school. The secondary school did not continue into year three of the programme; we have filtered out secondary data for the entire project to make the results comparable.   

Wherever the report refers to pupils, this therefore includes primary pupils only, unless otherwise indicated. 

 1. Headline Findings from Primary Schools 

 1. All pupils: On average, over three years, 81% thought their book was ‘good’ or ‘excellent’. 85% ‘liked’ or ‘loved’ their author workshop. 

2. Reluctant readers:   

● On average, over three years, 54% of pupils rated their book and 61% the author workshop as ‘good’/‘excellent’. 

● Book ratings increased by 15%, with 46% rating their book ‘good’/‘excellent’ in 2016 as compared to 61% in 2018. 

● On average, 91% of teachers noted that reluctant readers had been engaged in this project more than usual.  

3. SEN pupils: On average, 95% of teachers said that SEN pupils had been engaged in this project more than usual.  

4. Boys: Over three years there was a 16% increase of boys who look forward to reading ‘often’/‘all the time’; with girls’ attitudes remaining                                             

unchanged during this time, the original 15% gap from 2016 was closed by 2018.  

5. Independent reading & writing frequencies: On average, 82% of teachers saw an increase in independent reading, 76% in writing frequency. 

6. Visual storytelling: On average, 75% of teachers said the visual elements of the book made the book more accessible for reluctant readers;                                           

72% said the same about SEN and 62% about EAL pupils. 

7. Confidence: Over three years, teachers observed a 10% increase in pupils’ reading and 9% in writing confidence. 

8. Novelty: On average, 82% of teachers were introduced to new books/new authors per year (highest in 2016 with 95%, falling to 71% by 2018).  

9. Teaching practice: 81% of teachers said the project challenged their teaching practice and 89% agreed that they learned something new.  

10. Festivity: In 2018, 100% of teachers perceived a sense of festivity in school; 94% said their school had made parents aware of Pop Up Festival. 

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2. Expressive Evidence of Observed Changes (2018)

Reading enjoyment:  

“Book sharing and discussing.” Winyates, Y1, Just Right for Two, Tracey                     

Corderoy  

“Children were so keen to join in and read with the teacher.” St John’s,                           

Y1, Shifty McGifty , Tracey Corderoy  

“One child kept picking up the book to reread it, which I have never                           

seen them do before!” St John’s, Y3, Pigsticks and Harold, Alex Milway  

“Selected poetry books for themselves to read.” St John’s, Y5, Rising                     

Stars, Amina Jama 

 

Writing enjoyment:  

“They were keen to write and genuinely excited to add more.” St                       

John’s, Y1, Shifty McGifty, Tracey Corderoy  

“More work produced and with less encouragement from staff.”                 Winyates, Y3, Pigsticks and Harold, Alex Milway 

 

“A child enjoyed writing another adventure about Pigsticks and                 

Harold when they typically find story writing difficult, because they                   

knew the characters already and liked them, they found it easier.” St                       

John’s, Y3, Pigsticks and Harold , Alex Milway 

 

“During [the author] visit, the enjoyment of children's freedom to                   

write was clear to see.” St John’s, Y5, Rising Stars, Amina Jama 

 

Reading confidence: 

“They seem to be more confident at reading especially when they                     

came across new vocabulary words.” St John’s, Y1, Shifty McGifty , Tracey                     

Corderoy  

“Pupils asking about books and joining the library.” Winyates, Y1, Just                     

Right for Two, Tracey Corderoy  

“Attempting much harder/longer books.” St John’s, Y4, Mold and the                   

Poison Plot, Lorraine Gregory  

“Willing to perform poetry aloud.” St John’s, Y5, Rising Stars, Amina Jama  

“EAL/SEN pupil displayed confidence to perform his own poetry.”                 Winyates, Y5, Rising Stars, Amina Jama 

Writing confidence: 

“Their writing was more creative and they were inspired by the book                       

we read.” St John’s, Y1, Shifty McGifty , Tracey Corderoy  

“Joe told them he wasn't a good speller and this seemed to help the                           

children who were less worried about their mistakes and prepared to                     

try and segment and blend to spell.” St John’s, Y2, Marcy and the Riddle of                             

the Sphinx, Joe Todd Stanton

“The children read their own poems out aloud in front of their peers.”                         Winyates, Y4, Mold and the Poison Plot, Lorraine Gregory 

 

“Using more adventurous phrases and vocabulary.” Winyates, Y3,               

Pigsticks and Harold, Alex Milway 

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3. Case Study Books (2018)

These are the books used in the classes where teachers observed most changes in their pupils’ reading and writing attitudes and behaviours.  

SCHOOL  BOOK  READING  

The class teacher observed these increases amongst pupils when comparing pre- and post- project surveys 

WRITING  

The class teacher observed these increases amongst pupils when comparing pre- and post- project surveys 

Winyates, Y1 

Tracey Corderoy  

‘Just Right For Two’  

NOSY CROW 

14% increase in pupils who have a higher reading                 age than actual age 

24% increase in pupils very confident in reading 

17% more who enjoy reading ‘a lot’ or ‘a little’ 

 

 

19% increase in pupils very confident in writing 

13% more who enjoy writing ‘a lot’ or ‘a little’ 

St John’s, Y2  Joe Todd Stanton  

‘Marcy and the Riddle of the           Sphinx’  

FLYING EYE BOOKS 

40% increase in pupils who have a higher reading                 age than actual age 

30% increase in pupils very confident in reading 

49% more pupils who enjoy reading ‘a lot’ 

 

 

35% increase in pupils very confident in writing 

45% more pupils who enjoy writing ‘a lot’ 

Winyates, Y4   Lorraine Gregory  

“Mold and the Poison Plot’  

OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS 

18% increase in pupils who have a higher than or                   same reading age as actual age 

14% increase in pupils very confident in reading 

43% more who enjoy reading ‘a lot’ or ‘a little’ 

 

  

43% more who enjoy writing ‘a lot’ or ‘a little’ 

St John’s, Y5  

Amina Jama (et al)  

‘Rising Stars’  

OTTER-BARRY BOOKS 

15% increase in pupils who have a higher than or                   same reading age as actual age 

10% increase in pupils very confident in reading 

 

 

15% increase in pupils (very) confident in writing 

35% more who enjoy writing ‘a lot’ or ‘a little’ 

   

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4. Pupil Enjoyment of Books & Author Workshops 

On average over three years, of all pupils… 

 

 

 

● 81% rated their book with 4 or 5 stars (‘good’ or ‘excellent’). 

● 85% would ‘probably’/‘definitely’ read another book by the author. 

● 83% were interested in the author’s life. 

● In 2018, 70% said reading the book and meeting the author made                       

them want to write their own stories or poems, or draw pictures.                       

[This was the first time we asked this question.] 

 

 

Secondary Pupils:  

There was no data collated in 2018; comparing 2016-2017 data showed:  

● 8% increase in ‘good’ / ‘excellent’ book ratings 

● 12% increase in ‘good’ / ‘excellent’ workshop ratings 

● 8% increase in pupils who would read another book by the same author 

● 13% increase in interest in the author’s life 

● 9% increase in pupils who look forward to reading ‘often’ / ‘all the time’ 

   

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5. Spotlight: Gender Gap   

On average, girls were more likely to:   

● give the book 4 or 5 stars (11%) - however, this gap decreased from 2016 (14%) to 2018 (9%) 

● give the author workshop 4 or 5 stars (7%) - this gap increased from 2016 (4%) to 2018 (8%) 

● be interested in the author’s life (11%) - this gap remained unchanged throughout 

 

Pupil surveys have shown girls’ reading enjoyment remaining steadily high (on average at 89%) with only on                                 

average 3% increase between surveys; whereas boy’s reading enjoyment (on average 78%) changed more each                             

year between the pre- and the post-project surveys (on average 6%), though this did not add up year-on-year but                                     

was cyclical. The gap between girls’ and boys’ reading enjoyment remained overall unchanged throughout the                             

project. 

 

   

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6. Spotlight: Reluctant Readers & SEN Pupils  

Reluctant readers:  

On average over three years, 17% of pupils said they DON’T enjoy reading.   

● Of these 54% rated their book and 61% the author workshop as ‘good’ / ‘excellent’.   

Book ratings increased by 15%, with 46% rating their book ‘good’ / ‘excellent’ in 2016 as compared to 61% in 2018. 

Author workshop ratings did not increase, with 60% ‘good’ / ‘excellent’ ratings in 2016 and 57% in 2018.  

● In 2018, 45% said that reading the book and meeting the author made them want to write their own stories or poetry, or draw. [This was                                                   

the first time we asked this question.] 

● Over three years, there was a 5% increase in reluctant readers who look forward to reading ‘often’ or ‘all the time’ (13% to 18%) 

 

In 2017 we decided to hone in more on the impact on reluctant readers. Over two years (2017/2018), teachers said that on average, they 

considered 20% of their pupils reluctant readers. Specifically of those, 

 

● 94% enjoyed reading ‘a little’ or ‘a lot’ throughout the project. 

● 91% enjoyed visual storytelling ‘a little’ or ‘a lot’ 

● 89% enjoyed writing ‘a little’ or ‘a lot’ 

● 91% said reluctant readers had been engaged in this project ‘more than usual’, 37% thereof ‘significantly more’.  

SEN Pupils:  

Over two years (2017/2018), teachers said that on average, 16% of the pupils in their class were considered SEN. Specifically of those, 

 

● 100% enjoyed reading ‘a little’ or ‘a lot’ throughout the project. 

● 100% enjoyed visual storytelling ‘a little’ or ‘a lot’. 

● 85% enjoyed writing ‘a little’ or ‘a lot’. 

● 95% said SEN pupils had been engaged in this project ‘more than usual’, 36% thereof ‘significantly more’.     

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7. Independent Reading & Writing Behaviours & Attitudes   

On average over three years, teachers observed the following changes in reading and writing frequency amongst their pupils:   ● 82% saw an increase in independent reading frequency - thereof 63% a ‘slight’ and 19% a ‘significant’ increase. 

Between 2016 and 2018, the percentage of teachers who saw a ‘significant’ increase rose by 13% 

 

● 76% saw an increase in independent writing frequency - thereof 57% a ‘slight’ and 19% a ‘significant’ increase. 

Between 2016 and 2018 the percentage of teachers who saw an increase in writing frequency rose by 12% 

 

   

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8. Teacher Perceptions of Pupil Enjoyment 

 

On average over three years, of all teachers…

 

‘Excellent’ book ratings have increased by 11% (2016 to 2018). 

● 89% rated their pupils’ enjoyment of the author workshop with 4 or 5                         stars (‘good’ or ‘excellent’). 

‘Excellent’ workshop ratings have increased by 32% (2016 to 2018). 

● 93% would ‘definitely’ or ‘probably’ work with another book by the                     author - a 21% increase between 2016 and 2018. 

● 88% say their pupils now have a better understanding of how to                       become an author and what being an author involves - a 32%                       increase between 2016 and 2018. 

  

 

 

 

   

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9. Impact on Reading & Writing Confidence 

 

 

Between 2016 and 2018, teachers have noted:  

● 10% increase in reading confidence (62% to 72%) ● 9% increase in writing confidence (59% to 68%) 

 Other changes observed:  

● Over three years, teachers observed a 10% increase in pupils considered to have a reading age that is higher than or same as their actual                                                 age (61% to 71%). 

 

On average, teachers saw their pupils make most progress in the following areas of creative writing:  

● Language: using new and known vocabulary imaginatively (95% of teachers agreed)  ● Influence: exploring the style of the writer / illustrator (78%)  ● Confidence: sharing of writing with others and taking risks (77%)  ● Frequency: writing independently (57%) 

   

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10. Spotlight on Visual Storytelling   

2017 and 2018 we asked specific questions about visual storytelling. Over two years, on average 77% of teachers said they had                                         

worked with books with illustrations or comics during Pop Up Festival.  

 

They agreed that the visual elements of the book had, on average, …  

● 80% - inspired creative writing (25% increase between 2017 and 2018) 

● 72% - made the book more accessible / exciting for SEN pupils (10% increase between 2017 and 2018) 

● 62% - made the book more accessible / exciting for EAL pupils (30% increase between 2017 and 2018) 

 

In 2017 and 2018, of all pupils, 

● 82% said they enjoy reading books with pictures or comic books ‘a little’ or ‘a lot’; 

● 68% of reluctant readers said the same. 

 

While girls showed more positive reading and writing attitudes, behaviours and enjoyments across the board, boys responded just as                                     

positively to books with pictures / comic books as girls. 

   

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11. Teacher Enjoyment & Self Appraisal  

On average over three years, of all teachers... 

 

Between 2016 and 2018, 5-star author workshop ratings increased by 38%. 

 

● 88% rated the book with 4 or 5 stars (‘good’ or ‘excellent’). 

Between 2016 and 2018, 5-star book ratings increased by 15%. 

 

● 82% were introduced to new books and new authors; predictably, the                     percentage was the highest in 2016 with 95%, falling to 71% by 2018.  

 

        

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12. Impact on Teaching Practice 

 On average over three years,   

● 81% of teachers said the project challenged their teaching practice (6% increase between 2016 and 2018) 

● 89% learned something new (10% increase between 2016 [84%] and 2018 [94%]). Examples from the 2018 survey include:  

“[I learned] that it is important for children, and also their teachers, to see themselves as writers.”

“[I learned to] link creative drawing to writing more.” 

“Taking away pressures - everyone can draw. Drawing leads to writing.” 

“The [author] visit provided an insight into how creative I can be whilst striving for standards.” 

“From the CPD [course] I learned about using pictograms to help children visualise before they write. This came in                                     particularly handy when we started to look at character description in the book, I had the children draw pictograms first                                       and then they were much more confident when it came to writing their sentences as they had already come up with their                                           ideas in pictogram form! Definitely something I shall be using more often.” 

“I really enjoyed the Pop up CPD residential and found it really fulfilling, I came away with a new love of learning and                                             couldn't wait to pass it on to my class.” 

 

The 2018 paper survey after the induction event with author-led CPD sessions showed:  

● 94% said the author sessions at the event were valuable 

● 86% of attendees learned a new creative skill / technique at the session 

● 91% said what they learned they will use in class 

   

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13. Magazine & Festivity  

In summer 2018 we produced the second annual Pop Up Magazine.  

● 100% of teachers distributed the magazine to their pupils. 

● Teachers rated 

own enjoyment of content and looks with 83 out of 100. 

pupils’ enjoyment with 86 out of 100. 

● 71% of pupils themselves rated the magazine with 4 or 5 stars. 

● 68% of pupils said they had taken it home to show to their parents. 

 

One point for possible improvements made by a teacher was: 

“It would be good for some of the magazine to be simpler so that it isn’t  too daunting for struggling readers.” 

 

 

Festivity  

● 100% of teachers perceived a sense of festivity in their schools (with 63% saying ‘a lot’) 

● 94% of teachers said that their school made parents aware of Pop Up Festival (25% ‘a lot’) 

   

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14. Overall and Longer-Term Impact  

In their second and third years, we asked teachers to compare that year’s impact with the previous one: 

 

In 2017  ● 56% of teachers saw more impact on pupils in the second                     

year, as compared to the first. 

● 17% said they saw the same impact. ● 6% said they saw less impact. 

In 2018  ● 20% of teachers saw more impact on pupils in the third year,                       

as compared to the second. 

● 47% said they saw the same impact. ● 6% said they saw less impact. 

 

Longer-term impact: 

 

When asked to describe the impact on themselves and their pupils of participating in the Festival as a long-term, rather than one-off,                                           project, teachers said: 

“Myself and the pupils know that it is coming and therefore there is that element of excitement there. When I said we were studying a book and                                                     the author was going to come in they knew exactly what I meant.”  

“It meant that we could grow with the characters of the book rather than quickly brush over them.”  

“It enables myself and the children to take the next steps and build on previous experiences. if we were to stop I believe it would have a                                                     negative impact.”  

“Exposure to more reading and writing opportunities. Children meeting authors is priceless.”  

   

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15. Appendix  EVALUATION SCHOOLS: St John’s Church School, Winyates Primary, the Phoenix SEND school, Ormiston Bushfield Secondary (in 2016 & 2017) 

Pre- and post-project data was analysed from a total of 2,144 pupil and 112 teacher responses. 

 DEMOGRAPHICS: On average over three years:   

● 50% of pupil respondents were girls, 50% boys 

● 30% said English was not their first language 

● 69% described themselves as ‘White British’ or ‘White European’; 12% preferred not to say 

● Respondents came from all primary classes, Y1 to Y6 (and Y7 to Y8 in 2016 & 2017) 

● The average class had 26 pupils, and included 7 ESOL / EAL pupils  

OUTPUTS: 

● 7 schools - 6 primaries and 1 SEN school for three years; 1 secondary for two years (2016 & 2017) 

● Ca. 2,350 pupils and 85 teachers per year  

● 1 teacher induction workshop per year 

● 3 CPD sessions & 1 residential with poet & senior university lecturer Andrew McMillan 

● 255 author workshops over three years; relating to on average 59 different books by 29 authors per year. On average: 

○ 28% of authors were from diverse backgrounds 

○ 48% of stories were diverse (featured diverse characters or world cultures) 

○ 45% of books were new (published within the previous two years) 

○ A total 22 workshops took place in other venues (Central Library, Peterborough Museum, etc) 

● Ca. 4,400 new books added to school libraries 

 

METHODOLOGY (repeated annually):  

● Pre- and post-project online pupil surveys with one class per year in the evaluation schools ● Pre- and post-project online surveys with teachers of evaluated classes ● In-person evaluation meetings with SEND school ● Paper surveys at end of induction event with attending teachers 

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