Handout PT4 No.3 The Great Mouse Plot

by Roald Dahl

Some sample workbased around this engaging text

A focus on…• talking like a book• listening and reading comprehension• writing

Text: The Great Mouse Plot

Author: Roald Dahl

Independent book groups DramaTry our menu of drama activities to boost engagement with text

A shorty test paper

Artincluding

vocabulary and

Guided /group Reading Interactive group

conversations for teacher and pupils around the

focus text

Text/story telling

Writing around the text Try our menu of

writing topics around a text

Read aloud think aloud-shared reading of text

Pupils try strategies

Demonstrate the secret life of a comprehender

Read aloud think aloudA mixture of teacher modelling…

…and TTYP activitiesAcknowledgement to Leicester City Council 3

Background text to textTalk about horrible characters you have read about or seen in films

P 16 /17As I read , I want you to visualise the first 3 paragraphs

Quickly use drawings and key words/doodles to show what Mrs Pratchett was like…

We start the story in Chapter 3…read aloud -think aloud and TTYP

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Breakdown and repairP 17 para 1

Either you forks out or you gets out!I’m going to re-read …back 2 sentences…so Mrs P doesn’t trust the boys..she watches them..I don’t want you in ‘ere just to look

around…So forks out means buy something…

Breakdown and repair P 18 para 1

Sullen silence….sullen??...we simply watched in sullen silence…while Mrs P put dirty hands in

sweets….they didn’t say anything but theyweren’t happy…..angry or sulky silence?

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Your turn…retell the story so far! You can only retell 1-4

2. The story takes place ......

3. The storystarts 4. The

problem is ...

1 The 23

4charactersin this story are ....

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5. The problem is solved because...and it ends……..

1. Characters 2. Setting 3. It starts… 4.The problem is 5. It is solved because….and the story ends

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Writing- some generic ideas for writing about texts1. Retell part or all of the text ,perhaps using a story map or graphic organiser2. Retell part of the text but with a changed ending3. Use the 5 fingers technique to retell a gist4. Write 3 gists…one really good one, a poor one and one that is good in places but

needs improving5. Choose 2 characters from a text and write their version of the text6. Draw a scene from the text extract. Use thought bubbles to show what each person

is thinking7. Write the sequel or prequel to the text extract8.Take the text extract and transform it into a poem…a newspaper story…a TV news

item…a short play9.Take a character from the extract and imagine he/she is texting a best friend about

what has happened. Show how the communication could develop

Part 3 Small group drama opportunities-menu1 Freeze FrameChildren pick a scene from a text and after discussion make a still life picture which they hold for 5 seconds or so. Children can swap roles so that they represent each character. A narrator can explain the scene if necessary and the groups thinking that went into itVariations can be used• Each person in the picture takes turns to think aloud• Each person says a line from the text• On a teacher’s signal the freeze frame springs to life and the characters/narrator starts speaking• Each character answers questions from the rest of the class• Before and after. The group make additional freeze frames to show what happened before and after• What if? The group discuss how things could have been different and then make the freeze frame with a

Narrator explaining2 Mini scenesChildren read the text extract together and discuss/plan/ act out the scene with/out a narrator. Childrenchange roles. Class watch each group’s attempts and offer encouraging feedback3 Phone a friendIn pairs one character from an extract of text is asked to phone a friend and talk about the situation andtheir point of view. The friend can be sympathetic/neutral or critical (try all three).Pairs change round

Part 3 Small group drama opportunities-menu (cont)4 Daytime TVAn interviewer invites one/two characters to a TV studio and the studio audience (small group initially ) asks characters questions

5 PersonificationIndividuals/groups are given characters/objects/themes from the text and asked to “become them”Eg wreckage in the sweet shop the striding Mr Coombes Mrs Pratchett in the sweet shop the dead mousestrutting towards the sweet shop Roald's relief when he finds out he hasn’t killed Mrs PratchettMrs Pratchett’s hands in the sweet jar the sweet jars (different kinds)

6 Bus QueueA group of people comment on the text extract and try to show a variety of opinions. Discuss/plan before. Roles can be swapped

7 Be a detectiveA group are given a large flip chart paper and a extract and show their thinking using key words/drawings/doodles before sharing with rest of class

8 Carry on with the storyWe may not know the ending but that doesn’t mean we can’t make it up. Groups get together and discuss/plan how the story may continue. Groups may be helped by being given a first line to get them started or last line to end the story.

Art work-pictowords

Grime (hands)Alarm bells….

smithereens

High pitched yell

Art work-pictowords

A thrill ofdanger

The genius of the plot uncomfortable

Book Groups• Adapt our suggestions for book groups to suit your class

• Make the success criteria clear and involve pupils in evaluatingquality

• Time to prepare and knowledge of key strategies are crucial tosuccess

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Part 7Evaluation…what strategies are pupils using or ignoring in themoment of reading?Ask pupils to show their thinking and personal responses

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A Shorty Reading Test Paper

Practice papers 15

Chapter 31. This was a true story and it happened in the year……….2. forks out is closest in meaning to

1. Hurry up2. Show your hands3. Pay up4. Leave quickly

3. Find and copy 3 key words or phrases that the author uses todescribe Mrs Pratchett.……………………….. …………………………….. …………………………

4. Look at the phrase …would have caused a starving tramp to go running from the shopExplain what the author means……………………………………………………………………………………………What point is the author trying to make by using this phrase?…………………………………………………………………………………

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Chapter 35. Name four types of sweets Mrs Pratchett sold in her shop

……………………… …………………… ………………………. ………………………6. Find and copy a word on Page 18 that means angry

…………………..7. Find three pieces of evidence that proves this story happened a long time ago

1) ………………………………………………………………………………………….2) ………………………………………………………………………………………….3) ……………………………………………………………………………………………

8. Summarise three main points about Chapter 3. The first one has been done for you

1) It describes the sweet shop and where the story happens 2) ………………………………………………………………………………………… 3) ……………………………………………………………………………………….…

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