Grandma Bird / During Reading / Digging Deeper /
The Rescue
Viewing narrative events from an alternative point of view.
Lesson length: 1 session
Lesson from Grandma Bird series
Required reading: Whole book
Text potential
- Inference opportunities: Character Inference
- Inference opportunities: Narrative gaps
Subjects
- English
- Reading
Strategies used
- Comprehension: Inference Skills
Purpose
From the moment Noi leaves Grandma’s house, we see the events from Noi’s point of view. This activity invites children to imagine what Grandma could be doing before she rescues Noi, and to make inductive inferences about her feelings.
Preparation
- Print copies of the ‘Emotions Cards’. These can be adapted to suit the experience of the class.
Process
Begin by speculating:
- I wonder what happened when Grandma found that Noi had disappeared.
- What do you imagine Grandma was feeling?
The children may suggest a range of acceptable answers: for example, she may have been cross, or she may have been worried.
Ask the children to mime Grandma’s reaction to discovering Noi’s disappearance and invite them to choose an emotion card to accompany it. You could capture this by taking photographs or using the freeze-frame technique.
Continue to guide the children through further moments leading to the moment that Grandma finds Noi.
Model speculative language such as, ‘I wonder if she looked around the house first,’ and ‘She might have looked at the sky and seen the storm coming.’ will support the children’s thinking.
Final reflection
Working in pairs, ask the children to perform their improvisation to their partner. After watching, ask them to select Emotions Cards that they think match the improvisation they have viewed.
Key vocabulary
disappear
Resources
Pumpkin Soup
This story about three friends who fall out when one of them decides to leave home, would make an interesting comparison with this section of Grandma Bird.
Grandma Bird emotions cards
Use these cards if you think they will support and develop children’s language. Some children will be able to describe the drama without the need of the prompt cards.
Contributors
Nikki Gamble
Director, Just Imagine
Nikki has worked extensively in schools across the UK and internationally. She is the author of Exploring Children’s Literature (4th edit) (2019) and co-author of Guiding Readers (2016) which was awarded the UKLA Academic Book of the Year Award 2017. Nikki is KS2 reading advisor and series consultant for Oxford University Press and content creator for the Oxford School Improvement and Oxford Owl websites. Nikki is Associate Consultant at the University of London, Institute of Education and Honorary Fellow at the University of Winchester
