Important update from TheSchoolRun
For the past 13 years, TheSchoolRun has been run by a small team of mums working from home, dedicated to providing quality educational resources to primary school parents. Unfortunately, rising supplier costs and falling revenue have made it impossible for us to continue operating, and we’ve had to make the difficult decision to close. The good news: We’ve arranged for another educational provider to take over many of our resources. These will be hosted on a new portal, where the content will be updated and expanded to support your child’s learning.
What this means for subscribers:
- Your subscription is still active, and for now, you can keep using the website as normal — just log in with your usual details to access all our articles and resources*.
- In a few months, all resources will move to the new portal. You’ll continue to have access there until your subscription ends. We’ll send you full details nearer the time.
- As a thank you for your support, we’ll also be sending you 16 primary school eBooks (worth £108.84) to download and keep.
A few changes to be aware of:
- The Learning Journey weekly email has ended, but your child’s plan will still be updated on your dashboard each Monday. Just log in to see the recommended worksheets.
- The 11+ weekly emails have now ended. We sent you all the remaining emails in the series at the end of March — please check your inbox (and spam folder) if you haven’t seen them. You can also follow the full programme here: 11+ Learning Journey.
If you have any questions, please contact us at [email protected]. Thank you for being part of our journey it’s been a privilege to support your family’s learning.
*If you need to reset your password, it will still work as usual. Please check your spam folder if the reset email doesn’t appear in your inbox.
Best kids' books about rugby
The Rugby Spirit by Gerard Siggins
(£6.99, O’Brien)
A six-book series about a boy who is haunted by the spirits of rugby past. His ghostly teammates help him both solve the problems of the past and to progress his own game. For ages 9+.
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The Rugby Sticker Book
(£5.99, Usborne)
For younger readers: a lot of stickers to do with rugby and backgrounds to stick them on. Limited reading with labels and names on some of the stickers, but lots of fun for a child – and adult – to indulge in.
The Rugby Zombie by Dan Anthony
(£5.99, Gomer Press)
Three boys go into the woods one night and find fourteen zombies dressed in Wales rugby tops. But rather than run in fear, the boys help the zombies. Funny and entertaining stuff. Three books in the series, suitable for newly confident readers aged 7+.
Rugby Union: the Official Guide to Playing the Game
(£12.99, Haynes/RFU)
Haynes manuals were originally devised to help car owners understand the nuts and bolts of their vehicles. This Haynes manual focuses – in extraordinary detail – on Rugby Union. Every rule and every position of the pitch is dealt with in well-written and clear prose, supported by excellent diagrams. For the wannabe rugby expert, many of whom are children. 9+
Pride and Penalties by Chris Higgins
(£4.49 (Kindle only), Hodder)
This a great book about a girl who wants to be a rugby player, but her rugby-loving dad doesn’t take her seriously, meaning she needs to make a point... Sadly out of print as a book, but an excellent read on Kindle (ignore the cover art!). 9+
World Rugby Records by Chris Hawkes
(£19.99, Carlton Books)
Large book packed with facts and photos, in the style of the Guinness World Records books. Perfect for browsing and hoovering up facts. 7+
Rugby Academy series by Tom Palmer
(£5.99, Barrington Stoke)
Three stories about a school rugby team that reaches the finals of tournaments in the UK, France and New Zealand. The players are mostly children of RAF personnel during a period of air conflict that the boys find it hard to cope with. For ages 9+.
Jonny: My Autobiography
(£12.99, Headline)
Many sports people’s autobiographies are not appropriate for children, but Johnny Wilkinson’s is. Wilkinson is a legend in the world game. His story is told with humility and reveals an excellent role-model for children. The first 80 pages focus on his involvement in the game as a child. 9+
Winger by Andrew Smith
(£6.99, Penguin)
About a boy who plays rugby, set in the USA. This book and its sequel, Stand Off, are the only older rugby novels out there for children, but does feature challenging attitudes from a group of boys towards girls in particular. Handle with care, though it is well-written – this is as much about girl-boy relationships as rugby. Only suitable for teenage readers, aged 13+.
Calon by Owen Sheers
(£8.99, Faber)
For secondary-school readers, this is the inside story of Wales’ last grand slam winning season, some years ago now. The author is a poet who writes like a dream. Great insight into what elite rugby players have to go through. 13+
Mr Men: The Rugby Match
(£2.99, Egmont)
A short, colourful read describing how the specific skill sets of the likes of Mr Tickle and Mr Bump create openings for last minute tries and classic Mr Men storylines.
Rampaging Rugby
(£6.99, Firefly Press)
Packed with player tips, funny stories, irreverent explanations and black and white cartoons, Rampaging Rugby introduces both boys and girls to the game played in 119 countries and loved by 800 millions fans worldwide.
England Rugby: The Official Junior Supporters' Guide by Clive Gifford
(£9.99, Carlton Kids)
Updated every two to four years, this is a guide to the current England playing squad, with history, statistics and stickers. Formatted like a magazine. A good interactive book for a young rugby fan in KS2.
More rugby reading for kids: rugby magazines and newspapers
Text doesn't have to be presented between two book covers to be valuable! If your child is rugby-mad, get them into the reading habit with up-to-date commentary and news.
Rugby World magazine (£4.99 per issue) is a monthly magazine that focuses on international and club rugby. Includes player interviews and very well-illustrated advice on how to play the game. Much of it is aimed at teenagers and adults, but lots of children aged 9 upwards will enjoy reading parts of the magazine.
The Rugby Paper (£1.80 per issue). Weekly rugby union newspaper with match reports and articles about the game. Up-to-date and particularly useful during major international tournaments. Published on Sundays.
