Pass it, Polly

by Sarah Garland

Polly and Nisha are the only girls who want to play in the school football match. But football is harder than it looks. However, with a bit of instruction and a lot of practice they are soon dribbling, tackling and scoring goals. But how will they perform on the day of the big match.

Genres: Picture Books, Football

25 pages, Paperback

First published June 16, 1994

About the author

There is more than one author with this name.

Sarah Garland has written and illustrated over forty picture books and adventure stories for young children. She is best known for her warm and witty portrayals of family relationships, and for her outstanding work for preschool picture books.

She lives in the beautiful village of Chedworth in the Cotswolds with
her husband, artist David Garland.

Reviews

[Zoe Hickey · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book which beautifully demonstrates that if you put your mind to it, you can do anything!

[Gabby · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book for the obvious reason that it encouraged girls into football and shows that actually girls are just as good at football than boys. I also love that it deals with the saying 'try try and try again' and feel this is such a great way to get this particular point across. The final lesson taught within is that you really can learn from your elders which is something that children must know throughout their life. I think Sarah Garland gave it a great ending with comparing it with the picture at the start.

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent book about inclusion and challenging the stereotype of boys only being good at football. Polly and Nisha sign up for a game and find it difficult at first, but after some help from Nisha's Granddad, they play really well in the game and then the other girls want to join in at the next match, after thinking that football was only for boys at the start. Nisha is from a BAME background, and this is a good example of representation of realities, as the illustration shows some of the different clothes in other countries and I think it provides a good starting point for inclusion and discussion for younger children. I think this is an excellent, positive story for younger audiences in KS1.

[Ben Cooke · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like how Sarah Garland has carefully chosen two pictures; one before the story began, and one after the story ends, to highlight the impact of the story. Within the classroom these two pictures could be used to infer and deduce what may happen in the story, requiring children to predict what happens in the story, slowly unveiling pages to allow them to alter there predictions. The use of speech bubbles and illustrations allow a new feature of story writing to be unveiled to children.

[Mathew · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are so many books out there at the moment championing equality and some, I think, go out it quite forcefully at the expense of someone else and others celebrate it with care and wisdom. Garland's book, written way back in 1994, follows two girls, Nisha and Polly, who want to be on the football team for their school.

The girls in the class think they're wasting their time and the boys on the team aren't really helpful. Nisha and Polly struggle a lot at the start and reading books about football and watching the game on TV doesn't tell them much but Nisha's grandmother knows a thing or two and spends the week training them up for the game over the weekend. A lovely ending ensues.

I think that getting that balance between diversity, representation and challenging gendered stereotypes is a delicate challenge but every time, Garland makes it look like she's not trying. Seeing as it was written way back in '94, this little picturebooks books many books on the same theme to shame. Masterfully done.

[Ella · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book about challenging gender stereotypes. Polly and Nisha are the only girls in the class who want to play in the football team and the boys are not very supportive. The girls decide to practice their skills, with the help of Nisha's grandad and end up doing very well in the game. A lovely book which promotes inclusivity and could start discussions in the class, such as, should girls be allowed to play football. The book also promotes diversity in a very positive and inclusive way, which is great!

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this as it says that girls can play football.

[Emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hard to read aloud because of all the speech bubbles but already much enjoyed by my 28 month old. I think he will probably enjoy it for a long time. He also likes to say "gooooaaal!!". Nice messages about problem solving, team work, female empowerment, and family connection.