Why non-fiction deserves a bigger place
Reading enjoyment sits at a twenty-year low. In 2025, fewer than one in three children aged 8 to 18 said they enjoyed reading in their free time. But the same research points to a way back in: children re-engage when reading connects to their real interests and to the media already part of their lives.
Non-fiction does exactly this. Two in five children read non-fiction books each month, and news articles are a firm favourite, read by more than a quarter. Children who read non-fiction tell researchers they do it to satisfy their curiosity, to learn, to connect with others, and to support their wellbeing.
For multilingual learners, and especially those who have arrived recently, non-fiction and current affairs offer something fiction sometimes misses: the world they have landed in, explained. Over one in five pupils in England speak English as an Additional Language (EAL). They are a hugely diverse group, from children fluent in several languages to young people who have arrived mid-year with interrupted schooling.
The learners who face the steepest climb are those who arrive late. Bell Foundation research (opens in new tab)shows the later a child joins the English school system, the harder it is to catch up. Pupils joining after Year 5 have lower attainment on average by the end of Year 11, and those starting secondary after Year 7 struggle to reach the national average even after several years here. It takes more than six years (opens in new tab)to reach full academic proficiency in English. Reading widely, in and beyond fiction, is one of the strongest ways to build proficiency and the background knowledge new arrivals need.
Here are five practical ways to make it happen.
Current affairs give every learner shared, real content to talk about, whatever their reading level. A single news story a week gives newer arrivals a foothold in what their classmates already know, from a general election to a sporting event to a change in the weather.
Try this
- Primary: Build a short weekly news slot into your timetable. Pick one accessible story, read it together, and let children respond with a drawing, a sentence, or a spoken opinion.
- Secondary: Link current affairs to citizenship and PSHE. Use a weekly story as a tutor-time discussion starter, and let learners lead once they find their feet.
A child new to the UK is learning a language and a country at once. Non-fiction closes that gap fast, from how the seasons work here to how a school day runs to what people are talking about this week. Background knowledge is not a nice extra. It is what lets a reader make sense of the next text they meet.
Try this
- Primary: Keep a shelf of age-appropriate non-fiction on topics newer arrivals meet daily: food, weather, animals, festivals, transport.
- Secondary: Map non-fiction to your curriculum. A topic glossary or a short explainer article ahead of a new unit gives EAL learners the subject vocabulary before the lesson, not during it.
A learner grasps a sophisticated idea long before decoding the words for it. Audio, images, infographics and levelled text let the meaning land while English develops. This is where accessible formats earn their place.
One option to consider: some publishers now build these supports in. First News, the UK's newspaper for 7 to 14s, is building read-aloud audio and simplified versions of its articles into First News 2.0, so the same current-affairs story is available at more than one reading level with the option to listen along. It is one example of the kind of broader, more accessible reading experience worth looking for.
Try this
- Primary: Pair every non-fiction text with an image or short video, and read aloud so children hear fluent English modelled.
- Secondary: Offer a simplified version of a key text alongside the original, so a learner meets the content and stretches when ready.
Non-fiction lets multilingual learners bring what they already know. A child might be an expert on a topic in their first language while still finding the English words. Naming this expertise builds confidence and reading identity.
Try this
- Primary: Invite children to share what they know about a topic in any language first, then meet the English vocabulary. Bilingual dictionaries and glossaries help here.
- Secondary: Encourage learners to research a current-affairs topic in their home language before reading about it in English. The prior knowledge makes the English text far easier to unlock.
Non-fiction leads naturally to talk. A news story invites an opinion. A fact invites a question. Building in discussion, debate, and creating turns reading into a reason to use English with others, which is where belonging grows.
Try this
- Primary: End a news session with a simple vote or a "one thing I learned" round so every child speaks.
- Secondary: Run a short current-affairs debate or a class news bulletin. Give newer arrivals a defined role so they take part from day one.
The bigger picture
The National Year of Reading is a chance to widen what reading means. For multilingual learners finding their feet in a new country, non-fiction and current affairs are not a lesser choice. They are a direct line to the language knowledge and the conversations that help a child belong. Fiction opens windows. Non-fiction opens the front door.
References
[1] National Literacy Trust, Children and young people's reading in 2025 (reading enjoyment at a twenty-year low; re-engaging readers through personal interests)
[2] National Literacy Trust, Reading for pleasure (two in five read non-fiction books each month; over a quarter read news articles)
[3] National Literacy Trust, Children and young people's non-fiction reading and environmental engagement (motivations for non-fiction reading: curiosity, learning, connection, wellbeing):