Year 2 Class Teacher Sam Brackenbury reflects on the sweet reward of reconnecting with his writing group

It had been some time since I had last been able to attend the Norfolk Writing Teachers group. However, I was determined to attend in October for a much needed dose of writerly conversation, offering both perspective and inspiration for our work in the classroom. I was late, having caught a train from Oxford that morning, so was relieved to find that professional gossip had delayed the start of the session. Coffee in hand, I was directed to the “large, loud group” by a member of the Bread Source staff and settled in for an hour or so of food-filled writing.

We started with lists, this time surrounding snacks, leading to some superb stories and an array of much loved childhood foods. KP Peanuts, Salt ‘n’ shake or Salt and Lineker alongside the quickly thrown together side salad. Nik-Naks, Chip Stix and the favourites from Golden Wonder, Spicy Bikers and Tangy Toms, that were a school disco staple. Naturally, we discussed the colour and branding of some of these but also when they were eaten: after school, after swimming, in packed lunch boxes or when we visited certain relatives.

This progressed to a longer write on comfort food and I found myself professing the many joys of peanut butter, superb in starters, mains and desserts! For others, it was Marmite and limiting oneself to a jar per month due to its deliciousness, alongside the cheese and tomato sandwich – a humble combination turned to squashed salvation after being pulled from the bottom of a bag atop a fell or large hill.

In between activities, we spoke of how food can be a great prompt for children of all ages. Everyone has experiences to share and, as these are often very personal, they form great discussion points to learn about each child, their traditions or rituals, their heritage and what is important to them. There are the obvious forms of recipes but we spoke of opportunities to write adverts, reviews and stories of people we associate with certain foods as excellent motivation for children to write at length. It was wonderful to hear how teachers and leaders from all phases discussed adaptations for these and what they felt would work in their classrooms.

I always leave thinking I should write more at home but pleased that I had maintained the commitment to myself to attend. The session was the perfect restart to the new term and they continue to be the best ongoing professional development out there.

Texts used: Extracts from Comfort Food by Grace Dent & Crunch by Natalie Whittle; extracts of both in The Observer Food Magazine , extracts of Crunch in The FT.