Teach-Primary-Issue-19.2

78 | www.teachwire.net ME ANDMY SHADOW Storytellers have long used animals to symbolise certain qualities – snakes being sneaky or evil, for example. Some of the key characters in The World Between the Rain (the gods and demi-gods) have shadows which look like animals other than humans (Ursula = bear; Maeve = fox; Seri = small hare; Fiadh = robin; Aloysius = wolfhound; Marina = angler fish; Tala = squirrel). What characteristics do pupils associate with those animals? Do they correspond with what they already know about the characters? What animals do the children think most closely match their own personal qualities, or reflect the qualities they aspire to have? These ideas could be used to inspire a piece of artwork using a silhouette of the child’s head, with a silhouette of their chosen animal’s head behind it like a shadow. They could embellish this with words explaining the qualities they believe this animal reflects. MAKING DREAMCATCHERS The Dreamweavers Marina encounters in the watery world of Ishka play a vital role in helping to satiate the appetite of a dream-devouring monster. Pupils could create traditional dreamcatchers to help them with their work. There are lots of online tutorials for creating these, but it might be nice to use ‘found’ materials, which may otherwise end up at a rubbish dump or polluting the ocean. Sticks, straws, strips made from soft plastics or waste fabrics, scraps of wool, and bottle tops would all be inexpensive and easily available options. BLACKOUT POETRY The language used in this book is so wonderful that it would lend itself well to the creation of some blackout poetry. It is so easy to do but can have real impact! Photocopy a selection of yours and Take it further encourage them to closely focus on the text and process what they are reading. You might like to use the following headings in each box: Words I like; New words; Favourite phrases; Questions I have . It would be useful for each child to have a paper copy of the first four paragraphs of the text that they can mark up as they go. When they have finished, allow them time to look up and record the meanings of new words. Share favourite words and phrases, and discuss any questions pupils have. Can any answers be inferred or found in the text? Can the children make predictions as to what the answers to peers’ questions might be? What’s in a name? In stories, names are often chosen very carefully to give readers clues about the personalities of the characters they are reading about. Interestingly, in The World Between the Rain , the author has drawn upon Latin and Celtic languages to name characters and places within her story. Challenge children to find the meanings of some of the characters’ names and the qualities they might associate with them. Use a simple table to include the name, whether it’s Latin or Celtic, the meaning, and the associated characteristics. I would suggest that the Book topic following names would be good ones to investigate: Marina, Ursula, Seraphina (Seri), Uisce (sounds like Ishka), Fiadh (sounds like Fee-uh), Caibleadh (sounds like Cab-loo), Tuaim (sounds like Two-im). Once the children have found the meanings of the names, discuss them as a class – what clues do the characters’ names give about their personalities? You could create a spider diagram for each name, adding qualities and clues as you progress through the story. If you are planning on doing some creative writing, challenge the children to find a word from a Celtic language that could be used to reflect an aspect of their character’s personality. For example, brave, fierce or curious . What does grief look like? Too often, themes of grief and loss are only discussed when a class member has recently experienced a bereavement. Stories are a fantastic way of allowing children to explore feelings of grief and loss in an emotionally safe way. This allows the feelings to be normalised, and for children to learn strategies to manage them should they experience them themselves. In this story, the angler fish is a physical manifestation of all the emotions Marina has been repressing following the loss of her father. Re-read page 270. What emotions are named? Adults or children may feel able to share a time when they have experienced grief or a loss (a pet, a family member, moving house, going to a new school). What other emotions might be linked to a loss? Gather the children’s ideas to build a vocabulary bank of words associated with these feelings to help build the range of vocabulary the children have to express their emotions. Hare and Fox illustrations © Holly Ovenden “This book is full of rich language and imagery”