School library lessons: helping children become lifelong readers

A library lesson begins with books, but at the Under School it rarely ends there.
There are recommendations, unfamiliar authors, old favourites and the occasional difference of opinion over a character’s choices. Through these regular librarian-led sessions, reading for pleasure takes its place at the centre of school life. Here, our School Librarian, Mrs Fella, explains what pupils gain from their library lessons and shares four books worth reading this term.

The start of a new term brings new timetables and routines to settle into. Among them is one of the simplest and most valuable habits a child can develop: choosing a book and reading it.

This term, I have been welcoming pupils in Reception and Years 3 to 5 into our new school library at Chapter House for dedicated lessons. I want children to have time to look around, pick up different books and work out what excites them as readers. Being able to choose matters. It can be the difference between reading because you have been told to and reading because you genuinely want to know what happens next.

Of course, reading helps children build their vocabulary and improve their comprehension. Reading aloud develops fluency and confidence, while independent reading strengthens concentration. But the benefits go further. Talking about books during these sessions encourages pupils to listen to one another, ask questions and explain what they think. Those skills are valuable in every classroom.

The library also gives children space to slow down. School days are busy, and there is something important about being able to sit with a book, become absorbed in a story and read simply for pleasure. That sense of enjoyment supports both learning and wellbeing.

It is equally important that children can find books that speak to them. Stories can reflect their own lives or introduce them to people, places and experiences they have never encountered. When children recognise themselves in a book, they feel that they belong. When they read about someone whose life is different from their own, they begin to see the world from another point of view.

The library lessons give pupils time to explore those different perspectives together. We talk about characters, the choices they make and how their experiences might feel. Children hear a range of responses from their classmates and begin to understand that the same story can be seen in different ways. These conversations help them connect what they read with their own lives and develop empathy for others.

A large part of my role is reading widely so that I can help pupils find the right book at the right moment. Recommendations are shared both ways during our lessons. I suggest authors and stories the children might enjoy, while pupils tell me and one another about the books they have loved. That is when reading starts to feel like a conversation.

There is no single story that will turn every child into a reader. The joy of a library is that it offers so many possibilities. It gives each pupil the time, freedom and encouragement to find the book that is right for them.

I think of the library as a treasure chest of stories for everyone, spanning worlds and time. Our library lessons give children the time, guidance and encouragement to explore it for themselves. Every book begins with a first page, and every lifelong reading habit must begin somewhere.

October 2026