Noughts & Crosses
Malorie Blackman
In a Britain where dark-skinned Crosses hold all the power and pale-skinned noughts are kept apart and looked down on, Sephy and Callum have been best friends since childhood. She is a Cross and the daughter of a powerful politician; he is a nought about to join her school. Everyone around them is determined to keep them on opposite sides.
- Length
- About 110,000 words
- To read it
- About 74 days
- Stage
- Key Stage 3
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 Noughts & Crosses is on the list
- Year 8, Core. The books most schools teach in this year. A good place to start.
- Year 9, 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.