Colette Hiller – författare

"This collection of 60 poems to help three to seven-year-olds learn to read and spell is a hoot." —The Independent"The B on your Thumb is clever, engaging, educational and fun. I wish I had thought of it."—Craig Smith, author / songwriter of The Wonky Donkey"an absolute masterpiece"—Reading ZoneThe B on Your Thumb is a book of 60 hilariously illustrated rhymes and delightful ditties to boost early reading – each poem teaches a specific sound, spelling or rule. Using rhythm and wordplay, they promote phonics awareness, thinking skills and literacy. But most of all, this book delights young readers with the fun and silliness of the English language.  This is a book where words like to play,where letters get cross when they don’t get their way.There are sounds to make and jokes to uncover.An owl in your bowl, for you to discover.Meet the K on your knee, who’s ready for fun,and don’t be alarmed by the B on your thumb!An introduction instructs grown-ups how to use the book and extensive activities at the end allow children to build on their learning. Grouped into four categories – sounds, silent letters and secrets, spellings and words that sound the same – the poems include: See with Two EesThe Story of Q and UThe Rain in the TrainRidiculous PhEnough of UffCertainly a CThe Most ImportANTWhich WitchLearning to read has never been so much fun!The B on Your Thumb is a must for every young family’s bookshelf.

*WINNER of the CLiPPA Poetry Prize 2025*Daily Telegraph 'Book of the Week' - 'Want to expand your children's vocabulary? Try this book.'Boost your child’s growing vocabulary with 75 hilariously illustrated poems from Colette Hiller, author of the critically acclaimed kids’ poetry book The B on Your Thumb.Each poem in this funny, funky book teaches a specific important word, as well as its meaning and spelling, in an innovative and accessible format that kids will love. Using rhythm and wordplay, the poems help build a colossal vocabulary, thinking skills and literacy – without kids even noticing! But most of all, this book delights young readers with the joy and silliness of the English language. Building a colossal vocabulary has never felt so natural, or so much fun! Each word in this collection is defined in a simple rhyme. Using rhythm, humour and logic, each word’s meaning is made clear and accessible. Kids will want to try them out straight away: it’s a ready-to-use collection! You and your kids will love:Rolling rhymes that will be chanted again and againFun and quirky drawings that bring these educational poems to lifeHolistic learning premise from Colette Hiller, skilled in writing educational poetry for childrenFrom Ambiguous to Zealous, the words in this book are for 7-to-12-year-olds. It may seem inconceivable for one book to encompass such a wide age span! But in fact, inconceivable – and all the other words in this book – were selected from vocabulary lists intended for older children, so that younger children can challenge themselves and discover a wealth of great new words!

Noticing thingsis easy for you,It’s something a grown-upcan find hard to do. Children have vivid imaginations! With the flick of a wand they can turn into a cat, a trapeze artist and even make the sofa soar through the air like a magic carpet. Grown-ups, however, can find it difficult to imagine and play. You see, grown-ups are busy and have lots on their mind. But this doesn't mean they can't imagine - it just means they need a little help remembering how to! So it's up to children to teach their grown-ups to notice, discover and have FUN making believe.   This charming picture book is a moving celebration of family, play and the joy of imagination by poet Collette Hiller, brought to life with illustrations from debut talent Corrie Gorman.

Noticing thingsis easy for you,It’s something a grown-upcan find hard to do. Children have vivid imaginations! With the flick of a wand they can turn into a cat, a trapeze artist and even make the sofa soar through the air like a magic carpet. Grown-ups, however, can find it difficult to imagine and play. You see, grown-ups are busy and have lots on their mind. But this doesn't mean they can't imagine - it just means they need a little help remembering how to! So it's up to children to teach their grown-ups to notice, discover and have FUN making believe.   This charming picture book is a moving celebration of family, play and the joy of imagination by poet Collette Hiller, brought to life with illustrations from debut talent Corrie Gorman.

An incredible and uplifting true story about how music has healed troubled elephants in a sanctuary in Thailand.Some stories are true. Others are make-believe. And some true stories are so amazing that it seems they must be make-believe even when they are not…This is one of those stories.In a sanctuary in Thailand lived an elephant called Bonti. Short-tempered and destructive, Bonti was alone – the other elephants (and humans) knew to keep their distance. But when a musician came to play the piano for Bonti, something incredible happened…The Elephant and the Piano tells the spectacular true story of Paul Barton and the elephants who loved to hear him play.