Margaret Meek Spencer (1925 - 2020)
We are very sad to learn that the wonderful Margaret Meek passed away on the 4th May.
Margaret leaves an enormous legacy to the world of children’s literature and literacy and to us at CLPE.
Those of you who have been part of our CPD programme, have used our resources or read our books will know just what a great debt we owe her. Her thinking and her writing influenced so much of what we do and how we work, she was a great friend to CLPE and a great teacher.
Margaret was an enormous supporter of the Signal Poetry Award which became the CLPE Poetry Award (the CLiPPA) and was a regular judge. She cared deeply about all forms of children’s literature and deeply about quality children’s literature and ensuring that all children had access to the very best writing, illustration and literary experience. How Texts Teach What Readers Learn (1987) is a fundamental exposition of everything we believe about how important what children read is to their view of learning how to do it - and the reasons why quality children’s literature needs to be at the very heart of the school curriculum. Her contributions over the years to a wide range of CLPE publications and research were invaluable and her writing is still influencing practice throughout the teaching profession today.
We are so grateful for her support, her influence and for her work and know that we will continue to benefit from her work and refer to her writing for a very, very long time.