Journey to Jo'burg
Beverley Naidoo
In a village in South Africa, Naledi and her little brother Tiro are frightened because their baby sister Dineo is very ill. Their mother works far away in Johannesburg, so the two children set off on foot, with a little food and water, to walk all the way to the city and bring her home.
- Length
- About 12,000 words
- To read it
- About 8 days
- Stage
- Key Stage 2
Reading time at 1,500 words a day, the pace we start from until we know your child’s own.
Where it is taught
Why Journey to Jo'burg is on the list
- Year 5, Core. The books most schools teach in this year. A good place to start.
Reading it here
What your child does with it
- 1
Choose it and set a finish date
You get a suggested target from the length of the book and your child's reading pace.
- 2
Check in along the way
A longer book has short check-ins every week or two, so it keeps moving and nothing is forgotten.
- 3
Answer two questions
When they finish: a review of the book, and a deeper question about how it works.
- 4
Get it marked, and redraft
Every answer is marked against the rubric for their year, with a reason for every score.