Reading, Audio Books, Poetry, Drama and Creative Writing

Here's a great list of free literary activities, downloadable books and read-alouds by famous authors.  

• Lockdown Creative Workshops: Every Wednesday afternoon throughout lockdown, creative fun exploring mental health through street dance, creative writing, creative arts and Hip Hop. Book your free place.
• Storyparks: Stories, crafts and even nature activities in a brand-new Digital Den, packed full of activities to engage and inspire your little ones at home. Find out more here. 
• Puffin Festival of Big Dreams: Join Puffin authors, illustrators and even real puffins for creative challenges, stargazing, a Wimpy Kid studio tour, storytime magic and ooodles of fun!
•  As part of the Young Creative Awards Lockdown Monologues project, actor Cassie Bradley (National Theatre, Coronation Street) delivered two special YCA webinars in June 2020 - "Approaching A Monologue" and "Shakespeare Monologues". These sessions are full of practical hints and tips for actors. 
• Join Local Poet Manjit Sahota for his poetry workshops exploring 'communication', originally created for RSE Day. You'll find them on the ChalleNGe YouTube channel.
• Shhh...akespeare! from New Perspectives: Are you ready to take the Shhh...akespeare challenge? Perfect for brave souls aged 9+ years old. Step into the murky world of Macbeth and recreate your very own Complete Works. Shakespeare shaped acting, crafting, quizzical online activities.  You'll find all the information on page 46 of the Challenge Nottingham Activities pack 
• Commissioned by the Young Creative Awards, Stretch. Play. Write. is created and presented by writer and performer Bridie Squires and combines creative writing, drawing, stretching and meditation, encouraging participants to explore the natural world around them. 
• Lakeside Arts have the beginning of a short story about an exceptionally extraordinary house. Only Lily knows the truth, but to everyone else, this house is invisible... Have a listen to the story in the playlist and suggest some ideas of how this story could unfold. What could be in the house? Why can't anyone else see it apart from Lily? Does this house lead somewhere else? This is your chance to think imaginatively and play a key role in shaping a story. Find out more here.
• Lakeside Arts also have Captain ThreePlank's letter to inspire you to don your own eye patch and pirate hat and go on your own adventure. It'll unleash your inner pirate to inspire you to write a letter to one of your fellow pirates detailing an exciting adventure. 
• The National Literacy Trust have the the Family Zone where you can access free reading and writing resources, audio books, videos, competitions and reading challenges. It's split into different age groups for the under 12's, birth to 4, 5 to 8 and 9 to 12. Every resource is available for free, although to access some you may need to create a free account. Find our more here.
• Authorfy are offering daily '10 Minute Challenges', which are set by bestselling authors and illustrators each day. Take a look here. 
• Learn more about Shakespeare's plays on the RSC website here
• Nottingham is a UNESCO City of Literature, keep up to date with news here

DRAMA

• YARD (Youth Arts Research and Development) at New Art Exchange is a creative hub for young people (ages 8-16) to develop skills as performers and creative producers. You’ll find some of the YARD Creative Challenges in the New Art Exchange website, for you to get stuck in to at home.

PERFORMANCES TO ENJOY

• The National Theatre at Home is providing access to performances online. Take a look on the YouTube channel.
• Culture in Quarantine: The BBC has six Royal Shakespeare Company plays to watch for free, find out more here. 
• Watch Roald Dahl Day - The Power of Words on the BBCs Live Lessons here.
• The Globe Theatre has free online English-language Shakespeare plays on the GlobePlayer here. 
• The National Theatre enjoy world-class theatre online for free, take a look at the line-up.