He has also illustrated many books for the Folio Society including the V&A Award short-listed Pinocchio and Oscar Wilde's Selfish Giant and Other Stories. He's illustrated a set of ten stamps commemorating the 150th anniversary of the publication of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, and a book written by Zana Fraillon about a refugee camp called Wisp which is longlisted for the Kate Greenaway Medal in 2020. Then, for a complete change of mood, The Wind in the Willows, for Templar. Alternatively, this unit could be taught in the Spring term when the shortlist for 2012 is announced. Other book awards could be substituted, for example the UKLA awards, or awards run by local libraries. Have picture of each character displayed and as the book is explored things about that character are revealed and put around the character... mainly looking at strength in relationships Asking children prior to display who inspires them and why and then collate information and add to display/around the classroom On leaving college in 1986 with portfolio in hand he went to London to look for work. Commissions from magazines, design groups and publishers soon followed and his career in illustration began. However, a growing dissatisfaction in executing work only to commission led him to writing ideas for self-initiated book projects. This, and a desire to expand his media skills incorporating digital techniques and processes, ushered in many months of sessions with a computer - often cradling his new-born daughter in the other arm.

The starting point for FArTHER was an image that came into my mind’s eye during the course of an ordinary day. I saw a figure, a man, sitting at a workbench making a pair of wings. At the time, as I went about the various tasks and demands of the day, I did not know who he was or what he was really trying to do. In the evening, the house grew quieter and the family retired to bed. I felt there was a story somewhere in this image and so sat downstairs (with a glass of dark English ale), took out a notebook and pen and the first line just appeared: ‘Poppies lined the path to my father’s house.’ From there on over a period of about an hour and a half I wrote the story line by line, as if it were being dictated. I didn’t really know exactly what was going to happen or where it was all leading to – the things that happened in the story were a surprise to me – but I had a feeling of something being ‘right’ and a sense of exploration and trust in the work, that all will be OK! This book tells the story of a father and son and a dream to fly. The father is possessed with an unrelenting desire to fly which he never achieves. When the father goes off to war and doesn’t return, the dream of flying passes on to his son. This three-week Writing Root begins by introducing the concept of dreams and how important they are in our lives. It continues by exploring the text through a range of activities that include explicit grammar teaching, opportunities for shorter written outcomes and book talk. Children create a story-map of the key events from the book to write a sequel and create a set of instruction to describe how their own flying machine works. Children finish by writing a longer story about an adventure in a sequel to the text. Synopsis of Text:Ancient Greece, Icarus, Greek myths, Da Vinci, flight, World War 1, World War One, The Great War, dreams, aspirations, invention, family This stunning picture book by significant author Grahame Baker-Smith won the Kate Greenaway medal in 2011 and explores the relationship between a father a son. Close inspection of the text and illustrations provides subtle links to World War One and ancient Greece, in particular the story of Icarus, as well as strong links to the DT curriculum. There are many opportunities to discuss family relationships, memories and following your dreams. Links and themes: Cross Curricular Opportunities: Use the curriculum jigsaw and copies of the NC to help you see relevant links to the text. History Through the unit, the children focus on characterisation and make inferences about the author’s perspective on a particular character and finally write a new version or scene for the story in the style of the author.

The first thing I will comment on are the illustrations. They are incredible. Using photographic collage and illustration, this is the first book that Grahame has both written and illustrated and the results are amazing. The illustrations really do bring this picture book to life and the size of the book make it perfect for reading to groups of children. Grahame has also illustrated three picture books for Templar: the Greenaway short-listed Leon and the Place Between, written by Angela McAllister; the self-written FArTHER which won the Kate Greenaway medal in 2011 and was listed on the USBBY's 2014 Outstanding International Book List, and Winter's Child, another Angela McAllister story.

FArTHER is the story of a father who dreams of flying. However, when he goes to war and does not return, his son attempts to finish where he left off and makes his dream come true. Winner of the 2012 Greenaway award, this truly is an inspirational story showing how any dream can be fulfilled with love and motivation. The winning book, Farther by Grahame Baker-Smith, tells the story of how a son takes up his father’s unfulfilled dreams of flying, and finally takes to the air.