Street Child
Berlie Doherty
Jim Jarvis and his family are desperately poor in Victorian London, and when they cannot pay the rent they lose their home. Jim ends up in the grim workhouse, where the rules are harsh and the food is thin. He is determined to escape, but the streets of London are a dangerous place for a boy on his own.
- Length
- About 30,000 words
- To read it
- About 20 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 Street Child 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.