Farming books for primary school library

[babybythesea]

Advice please!
I work in a small rural primary school and work hard to promote a love of reading.

One of our children (aged 9) asked if we could get the Jeremy Clarkson Diddly Squat books. I haven’t read them (not my scene!) but a quick google suggests absolutely not in a primary school.
So I’m wondering what alternatives there are. Most of our kids live on farms, this is a world they are comfortable in. We’ve got fiction like Dick King Smith but given the choice they would rather pick up tractor magazines.
A quick hunt suggest Matt Baker (A Year on the Farm) would be suitable.

Does anyone have any other ideas? Non-fiction ideally but anything would do! This is really not my area of interest but I don’t want him to think I didn’t listen, and he’s usually a child who tells me reading is boring and pointless so if he’s asking I want to encourage! We’ve got plenty of picture books for the younger ones. It’s the Y4/5/6 that we are struggling for.

Did you ever hear the joke about the NQT who was placed in a rural infant school. She was showing flash cards with pictures of farm animals on them. She held up a sheep, and there was silence. “Come on, now, children. You must know what this is?” One child put their hand up and said, “I don’t know if it’s a Suffolk or a Romney.”

Kids from farms know their stuff. Honestly, they’d probably love it if you get in farming magazines (put out a call in the school newsletter).

Ha! We’ve had a similar comment. Straw in the manger for the nativity. Two kids messing about. We thought we’d give them something to do so say “You’re shepherds- pretend to feed this to your sheep.”
Horrified looks “We can’t do that. That’s straw. They don’t EAT that. That’s bedding. They eat hay. We haven’t got hay. Can’t feed sheep that.” We only had toy sheep so in the grand scheme of things it probably didn’t matter but it was critical to them!

We have a few farming mags which are well loved!

Can you not get in a selection of farming magazines? For year 5/6 at least should be appropriate and if they’re more likely to read them why not

I wonder if you can reach out to the publisher and enquire about a charitable donation if back copies?

It's not a book but "The young stock" is a fantastic magazine for young readers, absolutely worth subscribing if you have a lot of farming kids in the class.

Yes, absolutely. We have a few but we need a refresh.
Definitely not something we’re against though.

I’d not heard of that. We’ll have a look.

How about books set on farms? Charlotte's Web, all those 80s pony novels? They could prompt discussions on changes in farm life.

Possibly a silly suggestion, but maybe How It Works type books about farm equipment? Old Haynes manuals for tractors? Is there a local facebook group (or local parish newsletter, or thw school newsletter, or anything like that) where you could ask people to donate any unwanted manuals etc?

Oh, and I meant to say, but forgot - I absolutely love that you're taking this seriously and taking the time to find books that work for your kids.

We have Charlottes Web. And lots of pony books (the Clare Balding ones are a hit) but the boys especially tend to see pony books as girls books. However much we lead discussions to convince them otherwise!

I also went to a rural primary school and a lot of us were farm children but the only book I remember in the school library being anything to do with farming was Temba Dawn.

My Friend Flicka is a "pony book" but the main characters live on an isolated ranch and work hard and there's plenty about farm life. The lead character is a boy too.

Maybe some of the James Herriot books?

Sorry I didn't read your OP thoroughly enough with the request about non fiction. I agree with the magazines and Haynes manuals ideas. You could get a subscription to a weekly farming newspaper that has the mart reports and articles about grassland management and suchlike. Get MartEye on the library computer (livestreaming the auction ring at livestock marts ..so addictive).

Kaleb farmyard tales popular in our school.

Some of the Punchbowl Farm books? Discussions and a bit of angst between the siblings over farming methods. Set in the 40's maybe earlier. Loved these books

For younger Children the Floss books about a sheepdog think Kim Lewis she has written other books set in the countryside.

Beatrix Potter, The Tale of Jemima Puddleduck?

Or how about for non-fiction, The Victorian Farm (or Edwardian Farm), books based on the BBC television series, so lots of photos, illustrations etc as well as writing. An interesting comparison between their life and farming in the past.

I grew up on a farm and loved the Laura Ingalls Wilder books at that age. The book about her husband, Farmer's Boy, was loved by my farming nephews when they were little.

Kathleen Fidler's books might be interesting, they are based on Scottish history but are about rural farming families.

Farm Boy by Michael Murpurgo might go down well if you haven't already got it. Enid Blyton set a couple of series on Farms - the Six Cousins and the Cherry Tree Farm books. My childhood was exactly like these books.

They seem better at this in America or Canada:
Anne of Green Gables
Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm
The Wizard of Oz
The Red Pony

Also: The Sheep Pig and other Dick King Smith books. Earlier Roald Dahl books like George's Marvellous Medicine, Danny Champion of the World (not set on a farm but a very real rural world, loved this), Magic Finger, Fantastic Mr Fox are all rural.

Amanda Owen (The Yorkshire Shepherdess) has written a couple of books of farming stories for children. Might be worth a look?

We live on a farm and DS is year 5. He likes books about different breeds so different breeds of chickens, ducks etc
There’s lots of small holding books on how to keep various animals Katie Thear wrote a lot.
The pest control book from the golden cockerel series is a favourite in this house.
The photo books full of old photos of farming in the local area lead to the discussions about how things have changed and the good fun of trying to identify whose house/farm/shop it now is