Why Artemis Fowl Should Be in Every Classroom (Part 1)

Pauline Werninck teaches English at Kaimes School which is one of the Meet Our Authors Flagship Schools. Here, she puts forward the case for using villainy and criminal masterminds as heroes in your classroom.

Hi! My name is Pauline and I teach English at Kaimes School in Edinburgh. Kaimes is a special school which makes educational provision for children and young people who have problems in the area of social communication, social interaction and flexibility of thinking. Many have a diagnosis of Autism including Asperger's Syndrome.

I first discovered Artemis Fowl by chance while looking in the bookshop for something that would catch the imagination of my own two teenage sons who were reluctant readers of fiction.

We were all gripped (including me) and fought over the sequels as they appeared! So by the time I was in a position to use the book in a class setting I was very excited but also a little scared. I enjoyed the book so much and I didn’t want my recommendation to be the kiss of death!!

I needn’t have worried; the children loved it and many of them were motivated to read the rest of the books after we had finished reading the first book in class.

PERFECT FOR RELUCTANT READERS

Artemis is not a conventional hero. He is a 12 year-old criminal mastermind - a child prodigy who outsmarts and manipulates everyone around him. He is sophisticated in his appearance and interests. He has a manservant/bodyguard called Butler who attends to his every need. He comes from a long line of successful criminals and as a result his family is very wealthy; and at the beginning of the first book we learn that has a plan to make even more money – by stealing gold from fairies, which he is convinced exist.

The fairies, it has to be said, are no pushovers. They are well able to handle themselves. They are armed and have technology and they will do whatever it takes to stop Artemis taking their gold, or worse still, revealing their existence to the rest of mankind.  With the introduction of the Fairies comes the real hero Holly Short - the only female police officer in the Lower Elements Police recon unit (known as LEP Recons!). Holly is smart, brave, tough and compassionate.

All this adds up to a storyline that is clever, original and captivating. And, it is very, very funny – with the kind of universal humour that can be enjoyed and appreciated by both children and adults. The books are well-written and the vocabulary is appropriate while still extending existing knowledge.  

WATCH EOIN COLFER ONLINE

In my opinion, Artemis Fowl is perfect for engaging and motivating young adults who have hitherto seemed determined to thwart our efforts to educate them!

That's why we were delighted to participate by watching the recent World Book Day broadcast of the Scottish Book Trust's Authors Live event with Eoin Colfer on the 3rd of March.

It was even better than expected! Eoin was as funny, entertaining and brilliant as his books; and he gave helpful tips and encouragement to young writers while making the art of storytelling and act or creative writing seem as natural as breathing. Our pupils loved him, and there were even reports of certain young boys rushing home to invade their attics after hearing Eoin's anecdote about his boyhood attic hideaway.

The event is a great compliment to learning and using the books in class but could also work well as a general resources for creative writing. You can watch or download it on the Scottish Book Trust website.

Scottish Book Trust Meet Our Authors Flagship Schools are four outstanding schools that have been selected as ongoing 'showcases' for their work with the Meet Our Authors Programme.

Read more examples and advice from our four Flagship Schools on how they are using the Meet Our Authors in their everyday planning and teaching to benefit their learners.

Related blog posts:

• Diary of a Literacy Event
• How Charlie Higson Helped Me Bond With My Son
• Meet Our Authors - A Teacher's Perspective
• Reading for Family, Health and Well-being
• How to Support Your Child's Literacy
• St Columba's is Shaken Not Stirred
• As Good as I Imagined: Why it's Better to Read the Book Before the Film
• What Are 21st Centuary Literacy Skills?
• How to Deal With the Gruffalo!
• Worth His Weight in Gold
• The Juggling Acts of Creative Learning
• Jaqueline Wilson and the Four Contexts for Learning

Vist the Official Artemis Fowl website.