Literature map at end of epic journey

An ambitious six-month project to complete a pupil’s guide to literature based on a map of the London Underground has been successfully completed.

The project was undertaken under the auspices of the School’s Creative Writing Club, set up by Year 11 pupils Prashan Balendran and Roshan Shah at the beginning of this School year, and forms part of the English department’s involvement with the Prince’s Teaching Institute (PTI).

“For this project we created our own version of the London Underground map, replacing the station names with text recommendations and genres we thought the students would enjoy,” explained English teacher, Sarah Snowdon. “We tried, where possible, to keep the map geographically accurate – keeping the Sherlock Holmes tales based around Baker Street and The London Eye Mysteries on the South Bank.”

In the Creative Writing Club, Prashan and Roshan researched popular texts by surveying form groups in Key Stage 3, while Mrs Snowdon also asked her Year 7 and 8 pupils to name their favourite authors. Art teacher Jeanne Nicodemus, Librarian Ciara Murray and the team then used an empty tube map to plan different routes, trying to keep the cross-overs between genres as accurate as possible.

Year 12 student Hersh Kataria, who hopes to study Computer Science at university, used his skills to modify the map and produce the final version. “I loved being involved,” he said. “It allowed me to express my artistic creativity, using my mouse as a paintbrush and computer screen as a canvas. Of all the projects I've worked on, the literary tube map has definitely been one of my favourites. It's been a great learning experience and I'm really proud of the final design!"

Ms Snowdon is confident that the map will be useful to pupils. “Not only was this a valuable cross-curricular experience, but it will also be an interesting way for pupils to enjoy exploring their reading choices. They can share their favourite authors using their own personalised tube line and start thinking more carefully about the links that connect the different genres of texts they choose.”

The PTI is an educational charity that was set up to promote ‘a rich subject-based experience at school … and teaching beyond the test’. Each year a PTI Mark is awarded for individual subjects – each department has to apply annually and prove itself a worthy recipient of the award, which recognises inspirational teaching and learning.