Barbi and I went along to the 2011 Practical Pre-School Awards in central London.
There were lots of other children’s publishers and toymakers at the awards ceremony. It was great to hear about all the exciting new toys and books for children at the moment and to see the books we were up against. We had nominations in both the book categories – the Pre-School Books and Publications category and the 5to7 Books and Publications category – so we had all our fingers and toes crossed for a win!
The awards were presented by Psychologist Dr Amanda Gummer. She spoke about the importance of child-directed play and learning, which allows children to develop holistically, at their own pace rather than through high-pressure parenting. All the books and toys that were entered were judged on this, as well as a set of criteria, including: appeal to children at start and end of the trial; durability; educational value; value for money and more. We knew that if any of our books won awards then they would have passed these vigorous tests, so definitely something to be proud of!
We were so happy, we placed really well in both categories, receiving the overall gold winner award in the Pre-School category, for our My Big Board Books series as well as a silver award for our Wipe Clean Workbooks and a bronze award for our My Fold Out Books. In the 5to7 category we received the overall gold winner award for Smart Kids Animal A-Z and a gold award for Make and Do Science, too! Barbi and I took it in turns to collect the awards. Everyone back at Priddy HQ was very pleased to see us return with two very hefty trophies!!
