ABSTRACT
Children’s literature, and fiction in particular, is at the heart of the English curriculum. It has the potential to play a powerful role in children’s creative development. Literature can inspire, inform and expand the horizons of young people, challenging their thinking and provoking creative, multimodal responses in art, drama and dance, as well as on paper and on screen. As all national curricula documentation across the UK recognises, literature plays a key role in children’s development culturally, emotionally, intellectually, socially and spiritually. This chapter explores how to teach fiction texts creatively in literacy and shows how, if the eight key features of creative practice are employed, children can make rich connections, interpretations and representations of meaning. At the primary phase, teachers use literature to teach literacy, teach through literature in cross-curricular contexts, teach learners about literature and encourage independent reading for pleasure.
