Every summer term BLF’s Education Programme offers a week of eye-opening talks, workshops, and interactive experiences. These events promote curiosity and support developing students into well-rounded and open-minded individuals. Each student ticket is worth £25, but BLF is pleased to offer attendance for free to non-fee-paying schools.
Our Education Programme is bigger and better than ever, offering an opportunity for students to engage with amazing, life-changing literature in all forms from poetry to big ideas. Our 2027 Primary programme will run from 11 to 18 June 2027. The themes are Myths, Legends & Magical Creatures, Earth and Space, Great Explorers: Into the Unknown, Under the Sea, Performance and Poetry and Introducing Shakespeare.
Book now: Education Programme 2027Book on to our 2027 programme
Myths, Legends and Magical Creatures
Friday 11 June
Key Stage 2 English and PSHE
Years 3 and 4
Meet two very different dragons. The Dragon Kings of Chinese tradition rule rivers and seas, where they are associated with rain and good fortune. In the legend of St George, the dragon is a dangerous monster that must be defeated. Through interactive storytelling, students will discover how different cultures can imagine the same mythical creature in very different ways.
Then it’s their turn to create. Following a live illustrator, students will combine unexpected animal features to invent and draw a magical creature of their own. They will then build an original legend together before writing their own short version, deciding who their hero is and what they must overcome.
Venue: University of Bradford.
Time: 10:00 to 14:15, with arrival from 09:30. Each day includes four 40-minute sessions, with short breaks in between and a 45-minute lunch break.
Earth and Space
Monday 14 June
Key Stage 2 Science and Geography
Years 5 and 6
From the stars above us to the oceans below, these sessions explore the amazing connections between our planet and the wider universe. Students will learn how to find their way around the night sky and tell a star from a planet. They’ll discover why we really are made of stardust, tracing the iron in our blood and calcium in our bones back to the stars where these elements were forged.
Students will then explore real satellite images and data to discover what scientists can learn about our oceans from space, including how they are changing. Finally, inspired by the Voyager Golden Record, they’ll work with an illustrator to create their own postcard from Planet Earth, choosing what they would show an unknown audience in space about life here and their own place within it.
Venue: University of Bradford.
Time: 10:00 to 14:15, with arrival from 09:30. Each day includes four 40-minute sessions, with short breaks in between and a 45-minute lunch break.
Great Explorers: Into the Unknown
Tuesday 15 June
Key Stage 2 Geography, History and PSHE
Years 3 and 4
Long before satnav, people were mapping unfamiliar places and finding ways across land and sea. Students will examine al Idrisi’s remarkable twelfth century world map and discover how early mapmakers built their picture of the world from the knowledge of travellers and sailors. They’ll also see how navigation has changed, from reading the night sky to the satellites we rely on today.
Students will then take on the decisions involved in an Antarctic expedition, choosing what their team will need and responding as conditions change. Finally, they’ll question the idea of discovery itself. Through the stories of Columbus arriving in the Caribbean and Captain Cook in Australia, students will encounter the arrivals from different viewpoints and consider whether discovery is really the right word for what happened.
Venue: University of Bradford.
Time: 10:00 to 14:15, with arrival from 09:30. Each day includes four 40-minute sessions, with short breaks in between and a 45-minute lunch break.
Under the Sea
Wednesday 16 June
Key Stage 2 Science, Geography and English
Years 3 and 4
Dive beneath the waves to discover what lies in the ocean’s darkest depths and meet some of the creatures that survive there. Students will then enter the legendary lost city of Atlantis, imagining what it might have been like and considering whether it was ever a real place or simply a story that has refused to disappear.
But one lost world beneath the sea really did exist. As Doggerland Detectives, students will use clues recovered from beneath the North Sea to work out what this prehistoric landscape was like before rising waters separated Britain from Europe. Finally, guided by an illustrator, they’ll draw an underwater world of their own, thinking about what could live there and how life might survive.
Venue: University of Bradford.
Time: 10:00 to 14:15, with arrival from 09:30. Each day includes four 40-minute sessions, with short breaks in between and a 45-minute lunch break.
Performance Poetry
Thursday 17 June
Key Stage 2 English
Years 5 and 6
Poetry changes when it is given a voice. Students will discover how the way a poem is spoken can change its meaning, experimenting with their own voices before learning and performing parts of William Blake’s The Tyger from memory. They’ll see how rhythm and repetition can make words stick and experience what happens when a whole audience performs together.
The connection between poetry and rap comes to life as the room builds and performs an original spoken word piece, with different parts of the audience adding to the performance. Students will then turn to their own lives for inspiration, writing an “I am from…” poem drawn from familiar places and memories, with some of their lines shared aloud.
Venue: University of Bradford.
Time: 10:00 to 14:15, with arrival from 09:30. Each day includes four 40-minute sessions, with short breaks in between and a 45-minute lunch break.
Introducing Shakespeare
Friday 18 June
Key Stage 2 English and Drama
Years 5 and 6
Meet Shakespeare through the words, stories and performances that have kept his work alive for more than 400 years. Students will discover how a boy from Stratford-upon-Avon became an actor and playwright in Elizabethan London, and get a glimpse of what it was like to experience a play at the Globe Theatre.
They’ll find Shakespeare in expressions we still use today before getting to grips with one of his most famous sonnets and helping to create a new 14-line poem together. Finally, they’ll enter the world of Macbeth, meeting the witches whose prophecy sets the story in motion. Inspired by their strange language, students will write new lines of their own before the whole audience joins together to perform one enormous spell.
Venue: University of Bradford.
Time: 10:00 to 14:15, with arrival from 09:30. Each day includes four 40-minute sessions, with short breaks in between and a 45-minute lunch break.
Additional Information
Cancellation Policy and Incurred Fees
We are pleased to offer our events free of charge to non-fee-paying schools and home educators across the North. However, organising these events incurs significant costs. If you need to amend or cancel your booking, please inform us as early as possible, in order to offer the place to other students.
Cancellations can be made up to 2 months after your booking, up until 26 February 2027. After this date, all cancellations will incur a charge of £10 per pupil per event. Please note, each student ticket is worth £25, but BLF will reduce this to £10 per ticket for cancellations. We understand that exceptional circumstances may arise and are happy to work with you to find a suitable solution.
Event Locations and Transport
Key Stage 2 (Primary) events will be held at the University of Bradford.
Free parking for coaches and cars is available at the University of Bradford. A map will be included in the visitor pack sent before the event.
Please note, schools are responsible for arranging their own transport. Please confirm transport arrangements and availability before booking your places.
Event Schedule
Themed days run from 10:00 to 14:15, with arrival from 09:30. Each day includes four 40-minute sessions, with short breaks in between and a 45-minute lunch break.
Booking Information
You may bring as many students as you’d like, whether it’s a class or an entire year group. You can also bring students on multiple days. By booking, you are committing to a full event day (four sessions), from 10:00 – 14:15. To avoid wasted spaces, we ask that you only book tickets you are confident will be used.
Tickets are required for all attendees (students and staff). A Lead Teacher ticket is needed for each booking, which includes your school’s details. Additional staff should be booked using Additional Staff tickets.
No tickets or QR codes are needed on the day. At registration, simply provide your school name and event details to check in.
To ensure a smooth booking process, please obtain senior leadership approval and confirm transport arrangements before booking your places. This helps avoid late cancellations due to unavailable transport, unexpected costs, or staffing issues. By taking these steps in advance, you can help us prevent administrative challenges and reduce wasted tickets. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.
If you have any questions, please contact us at [email protected].
Visitor Pack
After your booking is confirmed, we will send a visitor pack with practical details, including parking and risk assessment information. A detailed itinerary, including the day’s events and participating artists, will be sent closer to the event date.
Lunch Arrangements
Students should bring a packed lunch, as no food is available for purchase on-site. Lunch breaks will be held in outdoor spaces near the venues. In case of severe weather, alternative arrangements will be made.
An event I want to book is sold out – can I join a waiting list?
Yes, if an event is sold out you will see the option to join a waiting list. For our Primary Key Stage 2 events, if we receive a cancellation suitable for the size of your school group we will be in touch to confirm your booking. Adding your details to the waiting list gives our team an estimate of interest levels and additional numbers required.
First Aid Provision
A first aider will be available at all event sites throughout the day.
Photography and Videography
We request that all parents and guardians are informed that photographs and video will be taken.
If parents/guardians do not wish for their child to be photographed or recorded then these students will be identified with a yellow lanyard – this enables our team to ensure that they are excluded from event recordings.
These will be provided by Bradford Literature Festival, and school staff are responsible for distributing these lanyards and ensuring they are visible at all times.
Access Requirements and Seating Information
If any of your students have specific access needs (e.g., sensory processing, physical accommodations, visual or hearing support), please let us know in advance so we can provide appropriate resources. To discuss access needs, contact us at [email protected].
Seating is allocated on a first-come, first-served basis, with school groups seated together. If a student needs a break, quiet spaces are available. Students may take time out as needed, but must be supervised by a staff member.
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Join the Bradford Literature Festival Education Programme to receive priority booking for our amazing events, access to our Digital Education Programme, and access to free tickets for educators..
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