Coming to England: An Inspiring True Story Celebrating the Windrush Generation

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Which of the characters did you find most interesting and why? I found Floella most interesting because she wanted to be the queen. It was important to have someone who has gone through some aspect of what I was writing. When you have that personal experience, it's great to get an opportunity to share it with society through a book and make a difference. It's got to be inspirational, beautiful and perfect. If you tell a story, it's got to be the best. Because remember, whatever they get first will stay with them forever. When Floella was a young girl, she travelled for 15 days on a boat from Trinidad to Southampton in England. This book tells her story. Was the plot exciting, thought-provoking, serious or light-hearted (or any mixture of these)?Sad. Floella was bullied.

BBC iPlayer - Coming to England BBC iPlayer - Coming to England

Did you learn any new words or facts as a result of the story?I learnt that meeting new people is very hard but you always have to keep going and never give up.

Was the plot exciting, thought provoking, serious or light hearted?It was a serious, interesting book about Floella going to England. urn:lcp:comingtoengland0000benj:epub:aea6e85e-0fb4-461e-a052-ed5217efbb3f Foldoutcount 0 Identifier comingtoengland0000benj Identifier-ark ark:/13960/s2v3kkn3vbs Invoice 1652 Isbn 9781406315967

Coming to England / Young Quills reviews 2021 / Historical Coming to England / Young Quills reviews 2021 / Historical

I would have liked some more detail about how Floella became successful. She wanted to meet the Queen and she did! I would like to know more about this. Would you recommend it to other children?Yes. Floella was bullied by her classmates but later she became friends with them. Floella's dad was a musician who played the saxophone in a jazz band and when Floella was a teenager she started singing in the band, which she loved. RAF officials welcome Jamaican immigrants at Tilbury, Kent, after their arrival on the Empire Windrush in June 1948. Photograph: PAHer story really has power. The young Floella wants to meet the Queen, little does she know, she will grow up to meet the Queen! Which of the characters (if any) you did not like. Why?I liked all the characters, especially Floella’s father.

Coming to England by Floella Benjamin - Pan Macmillan Coming to England by Floella Benjamin - Pan Macmillan

Baroness Floella Benjamin is an actress, author, businesswoman, politician, writer of children’s books, TV presenter and singer. She was born in Trinidad but moved to the United Kingdom when she was 10 years old. She has talked about the racism that she experienced while growing up in the UK and how she found it hard to fit in. She is well-known as a presenter of children's TV programmes, such as Play School , Play Away and Fast Forward . You look at it holistically. I had to think very carefully about what I wanted very young children to know and grasp. Some of them know about moving to a new place, so they can understand the concept of moving. Some of them know about parents leaving, even if it's for a couple of weeks, so they know the emotional feeling that gives you. Did you learn any new words or facts as a result of the story?No because I think it is a book for beginners. Children should be of all cultures in stories because that's the society we live in, and this is especially true of picture books. With non-illustrated books for older children you can imagine what you like. But in a picture book you must spell it out.

No, it was always an autobiographical story. In fact, when I wrote it at first it was twice as long and had to be edited to be so much shorter. So I didn't conceive it as a picture book until now. The book told me about the British Empire and about why people came to England from the other side of the world. I empathised with Floella’s worries about moving somewhere new with new people. It must have been hard too, to cope with the change of climate. London was cold and the people were cold as well. Being happy with her family again, helped her cope with the discrimination, she settled in and it felt like home. Discussion. Talk about the many different jobs that Floella has done: actress, author, businesswoman, politician, writer of children’s books, presenter and singer. Which of those jobs do the children think they would like to do - and why? What sort of person is able to do lots of different jobs?

KS1 Black British History: Floella Benjamin - BBC Teach

Did you enjoy the book? Explain your answer if it is yes or no.Yes. Floella got to meet the Queen when she was older. Which of the characters did you find most interesting? Why?Floella’s father. I have never read a book where the father wants to be a jazz musician. Wrigglers, wanderers, stampers and shy children... reading different stories to different listeners Is this picture book version the kind of book you dreamt about reading when you were on Play School?Owl or Pussycat? How Michael Morpurgo and Polly Dunbar find their inspiration in childhood memories I was very much involved in finding Diane. My publishers Macmillan Children's Books showed me work from at least a dozen illustrators. We wanted a very specific look for the book, something that is really warm and engaging and captured my story exactly right. When Floella grew up, she met the Queen. She became a Dame. Today she works as a politician at the House of Lords, trying to influence all our lives for the better. Everyone should read her inspiring story. Which of the characters did you find most interesting? Why?Floella. She told me a lot of interesting things about England.