Year 5 learning from home

bookletJune 2020

Monday

Listen to a story Listen to or watch Eric by Shaun Tan using the video of Ruth Merttens

reading the book https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H71F0-_QrpE What do you like about the story? Is there anything that you dislike about

it? Does it remind you of anything that has happened to you? Does it remind you of any books that you have read?

Remind yourself about modal verbs Complete Modal Verb Activity. You could challenge yourself to write 5 or

even 10 of your own sentences about Eric.

Well done! Share your sentences with a grown-up. Show them the modal verbs that you have used.

Practise reading the story yourself Read through Eric. Highlight the modal verbs that you can find in this

writing. You can check your answers at the end of the pack. Practise reading the story, until you are really fluent. Share the story with somebody else and explain to them what is shown in

the illustrations.

Try the Fun-Time Extras Can you find out some more about Shaun Tan? You could start at this

website: http://www.shauntan.net/books.html Can you interview other people to find out about the strangest visitor

they’ve ever had to their house?

Modal Verbs – Revision Card

Modal Verbs Activity

Modal verbs can express certainty, ability or obligation.

Add a modal verb to each sentence so that it makes sense.

You might need to change or add some words.

1. We decided that we ________ host a foreign exchange student.

2. We thought that we _________ make the house welcoming for him.

3. We thought they _________ appreciate what we had done for him

4. When he went in the pantry, we agreed that we _________ not disturb him.

5. We worried that he _________not tell us if anything was wrong.

6. He __________ be described as very curious.

7. I thought that he __________ to see the city and its surrounds.

8. I thought that perhaps he ___________ be interested in something other than the

ground.

9. I do not know whether we ___________ see him again.

Write at least 3 sentences of your own about Eric.

Each sentence must contain a modal verb.

Eric

Some years ago we had a foreign exchange student come to live with us. We found it very difficult to pronounce his name correctly, but he didn’t mind. He told us to just call him ‘Eric’.

We had repainted the spare room, bought new rugs and furniture and generally made sure everything would be comfortable for him. So I can’t say why it was that Eric chose to sleep and study most of the time in our kitchen pantry.

‘It must be a cultural thing,’ said Mum. ‘As long as he’s happy.’ We started storing food and kitchen things in other cupboards so we wouldn’t disturb him.

But sometimes I wondered if Eric was happy; he was so polite that I’m not sure he would have told us if something bothered him. A few times I saw him through the pantry door gap, studying with silent intensity, and imagined what it must be like for him here in our country.

Secretly I had been looking forward to having a foreign visitor – I had so many things to show him. For once I could be a local expert, a fountain of interesting facts and opinions. Fortunately, Eric was very curious and had plenty of questions.

However, they weren’t the kind of questions I had been expecting. Most of the time I could only say, ‘I’m not really sure,’ or ‘That’s just how it is.’ I didn’t feel very helpful at all.

I had planned for us to go on a number of weekly excursions together, as I was determined to show our visitor the best places in the city and its surrounds. I think Eric enjoyed these trips, but once again, it was hard to really know.

Most of the time Eric seemed more interested in small things he discovered on the ground. I might have found this a little exasperating, but I kept thinking about what Mum had said, about the cultural thing. Then I didn’t mind so much.

Nevertheless, none of us could help but be bewildered by the way Eric left our home: a sudden departure early one morning, with little more than a wave and a polite goodbye. It actually took us a while to realise he wasn’t coming back.

There was much speculation over dinner later that evening. Did Eric seem upset? Did he enjoy his stay? Would we ever hear from him again? An uncomfortable feeling hung in the air, like something unfinished, unresolved. It bothered us for hours, at least until one of us discovered what was in the pantry.

Go and see for yourself: it’s still there after all these years, thriving in the darkness. It’s the first thing we show any new visitors to our house. ‘Look what our foreign exchange student left for us,’ we tell them. ‘It must be a cultural thing,’ says Mum.

Tuesday

Certainty/Ability/Obligation

Sort the modal verbs that you have found into this table.

Certainty Ability Obligation

Eric – Your Thoughts1. Why do you think the family decided to have a foreign exchange student?2. Where do you think Eric has come from?3. How do you think the narrator feels about Eric?

Use modal verbs in your answers

Wednesday

Think about illustrations Look carefully at the Illustrations. These are from Eric by Shaun Tan. Read and think about the Reflection Questions.

Remind yourself about modal verbs Use the Revision Card to remind yourself about modal verbs. Now write some of the answers to the Reflection Questions as

sentences that use modal verbs. Write at least 3 sentences. Challenge yourself to write 5 or more.

Make an illustration Read Illustration Brief. Make an illustration showing where Eric might

go next, who he may meet and what he could do. When you have finished your illustration write some sentences to go

with it. Include modal verbs in your sentences.

Well done! Share your illustration and sentences with a grown-up. Show them the modal verbs that you have used.

Try the Fun-Time Extras Watch this animation of Eric’s story.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3x3Zn-qKSQ Could you try to make your own version of the story? You could use

photographs or you could use an animation.

Illustrations

Reflection Questions

What is powering Eric’s leaf?

Was Eric upset?

Would they hear from him again?

How are the pantry plants powered?

Will they stay there for ever?

Modal Verb – Revision Card

Modal verbs show how possible or certain something might be.

They can express certainty, ability or obligation.

Certainty Obligation Abilitymight

would

will

shall

may

ought

should

must

can

could

Modal verbs are placed before the verb they are modifying.

I thought I might ask him where he had come from.

I knew he would feel scared.

He will come back one day, I hope.

I shall remember him forever.

I may write a book about him.

Illustration Brief

Make an illustration to show where Eric goes next, who he meets and what he does.

Include detail in your illustration so that it matches the style of Shaun Tan.

Write some sentences to accompany your illustration. They must include modal verbs.

Thursday

Read a poem Look at the Caged Bird picture. Why do you think someone might keep a bird

in a cage like that? What does it make you think? Read Caged Bird – First Verses. Read them twice: once in your head, once out

loud. Each verse is just one sentence, so read so that it flows to the end.

Caged Bird

Caged Bird – First Verses

A free bird leapson the back of the windand floats downstreamtill the current endsand dips his wingin the orange sun raysand dares to claim the sky.

But a bird that stalksdown his narrow cagecan seldom see throughhis bars of ragehis wings are clipped andhis feet are tiedso he opens his throat to sing.

Maya Angelou,The Complete Collected Poems of Maya Angelou

Virago, 1995

Caged Bird – Further Verses

The caged bird singswith a fearful trillof things unknownbut longed for stilland his tune is heardon the distant hillfor the caged birdsings of freedom.

The free bird thinks of another breezeand the trade winds soft through the sighing treesand the fat worms waiting on a dawn bright lawnand he names the sky his own

But a caged bird stands on the grave of dreamshis shadow shouts on a nightmare screamhis wings are clipped and his feet are tiedso he opens his throat to sing.

The caged bird singswith a fearful trillof things unknownbut longed for stilland his tune is heardon the distant hillfor the caged birdsings of freedom.

Maya Angelou,The Complete Collected Poems of Maya Angelou

Virago, 1995

Reflection Questions

Does this poem remind you of anything?

What can a free bird do that a caged bird can’t?

What does a caged bird do that a free bird doesn’t?

Which would you rather be?

Which do you most feel like?

What emotions do you think the poet felt as she wrote about the caged bird?

What emotions might she have felt as she wrote about the free bird?

Do you know someone who would love this poem? Why would they?

Do you know someone who would hate this poem? Why would they?

How can something be unknown yet longed for? Is there anything like that in your life?

What is your favourite phrase in this poem?

Friday

Using a ruler draw five quadrilaterals on the graph paper and give the perimeter (all the way round the shape) and the area (count the squares or multiply the

length by width)

1. Read a profile Read Maya Angelou – Author Profile Which three facts about Maya Angelou do you think are most important?

Write these in one sentence each. Why do you think this?

2. Watch three video performances of the poem Watch these three video performances of the poem:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-pAxGbTwFm4https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Adg9rS4rVjIhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZzOxWAxde0

Make some Notes about these performances. What did you notice and like? Was there anything that you disliked?

3. Practise performing the poem Practise reading the poem out loud. Work on the first verse. Decide which words to emphasise and what

expression you will use. Practise until you can speak really confidently. Challenge yourself to read the other verses just as well.

Well done! Read the poem to someone. What do they like about your performance?

Try the Fun-Time Extras Make a recording of your performance and share it with someone else. Use this website to find out more about Maya Angelou and make a poster

about her like. https://kids.kiddle.co/Maya_Angelou

Maya Angelou – Author Profile

Maya Angelou was born in Missouri in the southern USA in 1928. She was the descendant of generations of people who had been imprisoned as slaves. She experienced many difficulties in her family when she was growing up and was very often treated unfairly.She worked at all sorts of jobs once she had left school, including as a cook, as a dancer and singer, as a journalist and as a campaigner for civil rights. She also directed films and acted in the theatre! From very early on she had loved reading, memorising poetry and writing, and published her first book in the 1960s. She was famous for her memoirs and autobiographical pieces, the first of which was called I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings.

Caged Bird

A free bird leaps on the back of the wind and floats downstream till the current ends and dips his wing in the orange sun rays and dares to claim the sky.

But a bird that stalks down his narrow cage can seldom see through his bars of rage his wings are clipped and his feet are tied so he opens his throat to sing.

The caged bird sings with a fearful trill of things unknown but longed for still and his tune is heard on the distant hill for the caged bird sings of freedom.

The free bird thinks of another breeze and the trade winds soft through the sighing trees and the fat worms waiting on a dawn bright lawn and he names the sky his own

But a caged bird stands on the grave of dreams his shadow shouts on a nightmare scream his wings are clipped and his feet are tied so he opens his throat to sing.

The caged bird sings with a fearful trill of things unknown but longed for still and his tune is heard on the distant hill for the caged bird sings of freedom.

Maya Angelou,The Complete Collected Poems of Maya

AngelouVirago, 1995

Notes

+ -1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-pAxGbTwFm4

2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Adg9rS4rVjI

3. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZzOxWAxde0

Explore more Hamilton Trust Learning Materials at https://wrht.org.uk/hamilton Week 8 Day 1

Week 2

Monday

Explore more Hamilton Trust Learning Materials at https://wrht.org.uk/hamilton Week 8 Day 1

Explore more Hamilton Trust Learning Materials at https://wrht.org.uk/hamilton Week 8 Day 1

1. Read the start of a story Read Opening. This is the start of a story. What do you think

might happen in the rest of the book? Why do you think that?

2. Choose some memorable phrases Read the six phrases that have been chosen on Memorable

Phrases. Use lines to match the reasons to the phrases. Read Further Extract. Choose 3-5 memorable phrases from here

and write reasons for why they are memorable on My choice of phrases.

Well done! Now show a grown-up the phrases that you chose and explain why you thought that they were memorable.

3. Make an illustration Look at the illustrations from the start of the story. Make an illustration that will fit the Further Extract part of the

story. Write your memorable phrases around your illustration.

Try this Fun-Time Extra

Imagine a city that is the exact opposite of the one described in this story. What would it be like? What would the people be like? Write about it and make an illustration of it.

Explore more Hamilton Trust Learning Materials at https://wrht.org.uk/hamilton Week 8 Day 1

Opening

When I was young, I lived in a city that was mean and hard and ugly. Its streets were dry as dust, cracked by heat and cold,and never blessed with rain.

A gritty, yellow wind blew constantly, scratching around the building like a hungry dog.

Nothing grew. Everything was broken. No one ever smiled. The people had grown as mean and hard and ugly as their city, and I was mean and hard and ugly too.

I lived by stealing from those who had almost as little as I did. My heart was as shrivelled as the dead trees in the park.

from The Promise by Nicola Davies

Explore more Hamilton Trust Learning Materials at https://wrht.org.uk/hamilton Week 8 Day 1

Memorable phrasesThe reasons are muddled. Draw lines to match the reason to the phrase.

Memorable phrase Reason it’s memorable When I was young I lived in a city that was mean and hard and ugly. This is an unusual adjective to have chosen. It

makes the phrase vivid and memorable

A gritty, yellow wind blew constantly Simile. The character’s inner condition is as desolate as the setting.

Scratching round the buildings like a hungry dog.

Three dramatic short sentences. Nothing, everything and no-one = hyperbole/possible exaggeration.

Nothing grew. Everything was broken. No one ever smiled. Repetition giving emphasis and echoing:

mean, hard, ugly.

The people had grown as mean and hard and ugly as their city, and I was mean and hard and ugly too.

A simile. The dog sounds wild and uncared for which fits the description of the city.

My heart was as shrivelled as the dead trees in the park. The extra ‘and’ emphasises all three words in

this list.

Explore more Hamilton Trust Learning Materials at https://wrht.org.uk/hamilton Week 8 Day 1

Further extract

And then, one night, I met an old lady down a dark street. She was frail and alone, an easy victim. Her bag was fat and full, but when I tried to snatch it from her, she held on with the strength of heroes.

To and fro we pulled that bag until at last she said, “If you promise to plant them, I’ll let go.”

What did she mean? I didn’t know or care, I just wanted the bag, so I said, “All right, I promise.” She loosened her grip at once and smiled at me.

I ran off without a backward look, thinking of the food and money in her bag.

from The Promise by Nicola Davies

Tuesday

1. Listen to a story Listen to Nicola Davies read her book: The Promise

https://vimeo.com/73026206 What did you notice about the story and how she read it? Was

it as you expected?

2. Answer questions about the story Read and think about The Promise – Questions. Write your answers in clear sentences.

Well done! Now show a grown-up the answers that you have written. Choose three answers to explain to them in detail.

3. Practise reading the story out loud Read Performance Reading Techniques. Practise reading the Opening of the story using some of these

techniques. Challenge yourself to read Further Extract this way as well. Share your performance with someone else and ask them to

feedback good points using the Feedback Sheet.

Try this Fun-Time Extra Record your performance and share it with somebody else.

The Promise – Questions

1. How did the story make you feel? Can you explain

why?

2. What does the story make you think about?

3. What has happened to you that is most like this

story?

4. How is the main character changed in the story?

5. What changes does the main character cause?

6. In what ways is this story realistic?

7. In what ways is this story imaginary?

8. What lessons could someone learn from this story? Can you think of five different ideas?

llustrations

Wednesday

1. Read a profile Read Black Redstart. What are the five most important facts in

this report? Write a sentence to summarise each one in your own words. (Check the Answers at the end.)

How does this article fit with the story, ‘The Promise’?

2. Tell the story of The Promise Fill in Story Structure with some notes to tell the story of The

Promise. Practise using these to tell the story. Try to include some Story-

Telling Language and use some of the memorable phrases from Day 1.

Practise until you are really fluent with your story-telling.

Well done! Now tell the story to somebody else.

3. Summarise the story. Look at the Endpapers. These are the pictures at the start and

the end of the book. Write 3-5 sentences about each of these pictures, that will

summarise how the world was and how it became.

Try these Fun-Time Extras Find out more about the writer, Nicola Davies. Her website is

https://www.nicola-davies.com/ Find out more about the illustrator, Laura Carlin. Her website is

http://www.lauracarlin.com/ Find out more about Black Redstarts

Black Redstart

The middle of London’s West End doesn’t seem like the likeliest location for one of the UK’s rarest birds. There are only an estimated 20-40 breeding pairs of black redstarts in the country. But in recent years, without being artificially introduced into the area, this rare bird has started to make a home in this crowded part of Central London.

The black redstart isn’t the only unexpected species of wildlife to start living in urban landscapes. Moths, butterflies, woodpeckers and even serotine bats, more commonly found in rural pastures, have also been on the rise in this part of London.

You don’t have to completely redesign a city’s layout to achieve this, says Emily Woodason, an architect. Sometimes creating pockets of greenery at sufficiently regular intervals is enough to tempt wildlife back into an area. The Wild West End project, involving six of London’s largest landowners, is seeking to create small patches of green space.

“It’s an ambitious objective,” says Woodason. “Ultimately the aim is to create a green corridor between London’s parks.”

As well as planning more green areas, many of the landowners are choosing to fit existing buildings with green walls or roofs. So far, it appears to be working. Several unexpected species have returned to the area, including the black redstart.

“Rock piles and log piles have been created, which are great at attracting different insects and allow more natural colonisation of species over time,” says Woodason. “Those conditions are perfect for this type of bird.”

Adapted from http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20190118-how-do-you-bring-wildlife-back-to-the-city

Story Structure

Normal Life The Discovery The Journey What happens next

Story-Telling language

One day… At first…

After a while…

Next… Soon after…

Subsequently… Very quickly… Then…

In the beginning…

Later on…

In the end… Finally…

Suddenly…

After that… However…

End Papers

from The Promise by Laura Carlin

Endpapers WritingWrite 3-5 Sentences about each of the pictures that will summarise how the

world was and how it became.

Thursday

1. 4 × 62342. 7 × 53823. 8 × 47344. 5 × 78565. 6 × 84316. 9 × 54087. 3 × 87968. 7 × 6857

Read non-fiction informationRead the report on Sea Myths. Which of these creatures had you heard of before? What is the most important piece of information about each? Why do you think that people like to tell stories of sea creatures like these?

Well done! Now show a grown-up the words that you have collected. You can check your answers at the end of the pack.

Research one of the sea-creatures Choose one of the sea-creatures from Sea Myths. Research

some more information about it and make a poster about all that you discover. Keep this safe – you will need it tomorrow.

Try the Fun-Time Extra Can you make up a story about one of these sea-creatures? You

could write it as a comic-strip, a script or as a story. Share your finished story with other people.

Sea Myths

The Kraken

The kraken is a legendary monster. Scandinavian folktales told stories of this giant, terrifying creature who lived in the sea. Some stories told of the kraken pulling ships apart with its strong tentacles. Other myths were that it often caused dangerous whirlpools in the water which sunk ships fast. It is thought that the myths arose from sightings of giant squid and these terrified and inspired tall stories.

Sirens

In Greek Mythology, the sirens were dangerous creatures, who lured unlucky sailors with their enchanting music and beautiful songs. The ships sailed into the rocks that surrounded the island and capsized. Sirens were half human and half bird. Originally, they could be men or women, but later stories described all sirens as women.

Merfolk

In folktales, a mermaid or merman is an aquatic creature with the upper body of a human and the lower body of a fish. They appeared first in stories in ancient Assyria but soon were told around the world. Some tales show merpeople as very kind and helpful towards sailors, while other stories link them to storms, floods and shipwrecks. Many people explain that belief in merpeople is because of manatees (or sea cows).

Selkies

Selkies are found in folktales from the Northern Isles of Scotland. They are able to change from seal to human form by shedding their skins. In some stories they come to land and live as humans for many years before returning to the sea.

Revision Card 1 – Word Classes

Revision Card 2 – Word Classes

Classification Table

Nouns Verbs

Adjectives Adverbs

Prepositions Determiners

Pronounsincluding relative pronouns

Conjunctions

Friday

1. 32 × 272. 34 × 483. 52 × 244. 75 × 325. 45 × 456. 42 × 68

1. Read a poem Read Long, Lone. Read the poem twice, once in your head and

once out loud. What do you like about this poem? Is there anything that you

dislike about it? What patterns can you find? What puzzles and questions does it leave?

3. Write some ideas for a poem Read Example. Try re-writing Long, Lone with new words from

the same word-classes. Write on Your Ideas. Now choose whether to copy out a verse of Long, Lone in your

best handwriting or to copy out your own new poem.

Try these Fun-Time Extras Make an illustration for Long, Lone or for your new poem. Practise reading Long, Lone or your new poem and film and

share your reading with somebody else.

Long, Lone

Long, long, long and loneis the selkie’s song when the storm winds moan,is the sigh of the sea as it rubs the stone,is the word of the sea that lives in the bone.

Long and lone is the gliding flightof the albatross in the dawn’s grey lighton its wide white wings where the winds blow highover the waves where the sea-ghosts cry.

Long and lone is the sea I findthat sighs on the shore at the edge of my mind;long, long, long and loneIs the word of the sea that lives in the bone.

Russell Hoban

From My First Oxford Book of Poems compiled by John Foster

Example

The subject and mood of the poem has been changed by swapping words for new ones of the same class.

Sharp, Light

Sharp, sharp, sharp and light

are the serpent’s eyes when the hard hunger bites,

is the gnash of the teeth as they display the might,

is the point of the tongue that flicks in the night.

Your Ideas

Change the mood or subject of the poem by swapping words for new ones of the same class. Write your ideas on this sheet.

Long, Lone

Long, long, long and lone

is the selkie’s song when the storm winds moan,

is the sigh of the sea as it rubs the stone,

is the word of the sea that lives in the bone.

Long and lone is the gliding flight

of the albatross in the dawn’s grey light

on its wide white wings where the winds blow high

over the waves where the sea-ghosts cry.

Long and lone is the sea I find

that sighs on the shore at the edge of my mind;

long, long, long and lone

Is the word of the sea that lives in the bone.

Poem

Either copy out your new poem, or copy your favourite verse of Long, Lone. Use your very best handwriting.

Week 3 – Monday

Clue – each set has 100 squares

1. Listen to a story Listen to the reading of The Lost Thing by Shaun Tan.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAHTsBGhues What do you like about the story? Is there anything that you dislike?

Does it remind you of anything that you have ever read or seen?

2. Think about the story Read Reflection Questions. Think carefully about your answers to these questions. You could read

the Text of the story to help you. Write some of your answers as sentences in the Speech Bubbles.

Try these Fun-Time Extras Share the story with a grown-up and ask them the Reflection Questions.

Do they give the same answers as you did? Watch Shaun Tan drawing the Lost Thing. Can you learn to draw it?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_xoudh_cdU&t=57s

Text of the Lost Thing by Shaun TanSo you want to hear a story?

Well, I used to know a whole lot of pretty interesting ones. Some of them so funny you’d laugh yourself unconscious, others so terrible you’d never want to repeat them. But I can’t remember any of those. So I’ll just tell you about the time I found that lost thing.

This all happened a few summers ago, one rather ordinary day by the beach. Not much was going on. I was, as usual, working tirelessly on my bottle-top collection and stopped to look up for no particular reason. That’s when I first saw the thing.

I must have stared at it for a while. I mean, it had a really weird look about it – a sad, lost sort of look. Nobody else seemed to notice it was there. Too busy doing beach stuff, I guess. Naturally, I was intrigued. I decided to investigate.

Sure didn’t do much. It just sat there, looking out of place. I was baffled. It was quite friendly though, once I started talking to it. I played with the thing for most of the afternoon. It was great fun, yet I couldn’t help feeling that something wasn’t quite right.

As the hours slouched by, it seemed less and less likely that anybody was coming to take the thing home. There was no denying the unhappy truth of the situation. It was lost.

I asked a few people if they knew anything about it, but nobody was very helpful.

I took the lost thing over to Pete’s place. Pete has an opinion on just about everything.

“Cool,” he said.

“I’m trying to find out who owns it,” I told him.

“I dunno man,” said Pete. “It’s pretty weird. Maybe it doesn’t belong to anyone. Maybe it doesn’t come from anywhere. Some things are like that…” He paused for dramatic effect, “…just plain lost.”

There was nothing left to do but take the thing home with me. I mean, I couldn’t just leave it wandering the streets. Plus I felt kind of sorry for it. My parents didn’t really notice it at first. Too busy discussing current events, I guess. Eventually I had to point it out to them

“Its feet are filthy!” shrieked Mum.

“It could have all kinds of strange diseases,” warned Dad.

“Take it back to where you found it,” they demanded, both at the same time.

“It’s lost,” I said, but they had already started talking about something else. I hid the thing in our back shed and gave it something to eat, once I found out what it liked. It seemed a bit happier then, even though it was still lost.

I checked the local paper for any lost pet notices, but only found a lot of good deals on refrigerator repairs. I remember thinking then that Pete was probably right, that some things were just plain lost. In any case, I sure couldn’t keep the thing in the shed forever. Mum or Dad would eventually notice it when they came out looking for a hammer or something.

It was a real dilemma. I was wondering what to do when a small advertisement on the last page of the paper happened to catch my eye. The next morning we caught a tram into the city.

We arrived at a tall grey building with no windows. It was pretty dark in there, and it smelt like disinfectant. “I have a lost thing,” I called to the receptionist at the front desk. “Fill in these forms,” she said. The lost thing made a small, sad noise. I was looking around for a pen when I felt something tug the back of my shirt.

“If you really care about that thing you shouldn’t leave it here,” said a tiny voice. “This is a place for forgetting, leaving behind, smoothing over. Here take this.”

It was business card with a kind of sign on it. It wasn’t very important looking but it did seem to point somewhere. “Cheers,” I said.

At this point we left that tall grey building and hunted all over the place for this sign. It wasn’t an easy job and I can’t say I knew what it all meant.

Eventually, we found what seemed to be the right place, in a dark little gap off some anonymous little street. The sort of place you’d never know existed unless you were actually looking for it. I pressed a buzzer on the wall and this big door opened up. I didn’t know what to think, but the lost thing made an approving sort of noise. It seemed as good a time as any to say goodbye to each other. So we did.

Then I went home to classify my bottle-top collection. Well, that’s it. That’s the story. Not especially profound, I know, but I never said it was.

And don’t ask me what the moral is. I mean, I can’t say that the thing actually belonged in the place where it ended up. In fact, none of the things there really belonged. They all seemed happy enough though, so maybe that didn’t matter. I don’t know…

I still think about that lost thing from time to time. Especially when I see something out of the corner of my eye that doesn’t quite fit. You know, something with a weird, sad, lost sort of look. I see that sort of thing less and less these days though. Maybe there aren’t many lost things around anymore.

Or maybe I’ve just stopped noticing them. Too busy doing other stuff, I guess.

Reflection Questions

What adjectives are used in the story? What is the effect of these on the mood of the story?Can you find examples of humour?Can you find examples of informal language?

Where do you think the cleaner character has come from?What is it?Why has it ended up there?Why does it direct the Lost Thing to the special place but not go there itself?

What happens to the Lost Thing?What happens to the boy?How do each of the other characters respond to the Lost Thing?

How did the story make you feel? Can you explain why?

What does the story make you think about?

Speech Bubbles

Picture 1 - Cahill Expressway by Jeffrey Smart

Picture 2 - Early Sunday Morning by Edward Hopper

Picture 3 - Collins Street, 5pm by John Brack

Picture Prompts

1. What was your first reaction to this painting?

Why do you think you had the reaction?

2. Describe the lines in this painting.

3. Describe the colours in the painting.

4. Which area of the painting is most important?

Why?

5. What adjectives would you use to describe the

painting?

6. If you could ask the artist a question, what

would you ask him/her?

7. What emotions do you notice in the painting?

8. Who do you know that would really like this

painting? Why would they like it?

9. Who do you know that would really dislike this

painting? Why would they dislike it?

10. If this painting were music, what would it

sound like?

Tuesday

1. ½ of 50 =2. 1/3 of 90 =3. 2/8 of 64 = 4. 2/5 of 25 = 5. 4/5 of 30 = 6. 6/9 of 81 =

Clue – remember divide by the denominator (bottom) then multiply by the numerator (top)

Book review

Text of the Lost Thing by Shaun Tan

So you want to hear a story?

Well, I used to know a whole lot of pretty interesting ones. Some of them so funny you’d laugh yourself unconscious, others so terrible you’d never want to repeat them. But I can’t remember any of those. So I’ll just tell you about the time I found that lost thing.

This all happened a few summers ago, one rather ordinary day by the beach. Not much was going on. I was, as usual, working tirelessly on my bottle-top collection and stopped to look up for no particular reason. That’s when I first saw the thing.

I must have stared at it for a while. I mean, it had a really weird look about it – a sad, lost sort of look. Nobody else seemed to notice it was there. Too busy doing beach stuff, I guess. Naturally, I was intrigued. I decided to investigate.

Sure didn’t do much. It just sat there, looking out of place. I was baffled. It was quite friendly though, once I started talking to it. I played with the thing for most of the afternoon. It was great fun, yet I couldn’t help feeling that something wasn’t quite right.

As the hours slouched by, it seemed less and less likely that anybody was coming to take the thing home. There was no denying the unhappy truth of the situation. It was lost.

I asked a few people if they knew anything about it, but nobody was very helpful.

I took the lost thing over to Pete’s place. Pete has an opinion on just about everything.

“Cool,” he said.

“I’m trying to find out who owns it,” I told him.

“I dunno man,” said Pete. “It’s pretty weird. Maybe it doesn’t belong to anyone. Maybe it doesn’t come from anywhere. Some things are like that…” He paused for dramatic effect, “…just plain lost.”

There was nothing left to do but take the thing home with me. I mean, I couldn’t just leave it wandering the streets. Plus I felt kind of sorry for it. My

parents didn’t really notice it at first. Too busy discussing current events, I guess. Eventually I had to point it out to them

“Its feet are filthy!” shrieked Mum.

“It could have all kinds of strange diseases,” warned Dad.

“Take it back to where you found it,” they demanded, both at the same time.

“It’s lost,” I said, but they had already started talking about something else. I hid the thing in our back shed and gave it something to eat, once I found out what it liked. It seemed a bit happier then, even though it was still lost.

I checked the local paper for any lost pet notices, but only found a lot of good deals on refrigerator repairs. I remember thinking then that Pete was probably right, that some things were just plain lost. In any case, I sure couldn’t keep the thing in the shed forever. Mum or Dad would eventually notice it when they came out looking for a hammer or something.

It was a real dilemma. I was wondering what to do when a small advertisement on the last page of the paper happened to catch my eye. The next morning we caught a tram into the city.

We arrived at a tall grey building with no windows. It was pretty dark in there, and it smelt like disinfectant. “I have a lost thing,” I called to the receptionist at the front desk. “Fill in these forms,” she said. The lost thing made a small, sad noise. I was looking around for a pen when I felt something tug the back of my shirt.

“If you really care about that thing you shouldn’t leave it here,” said a tiny voice. “This is a place for forgetting, leaving behind, smoothing over. Here take this.”

It was business card with a kind of sign on it. It wasn’t very important looking but it did seem to point somewhere. “Cheers,” I said.

At this point we left that tall grey building and hunted all over the place for this sign. It wasn’t an easy job and I can’t say I knew what it all meant.

Eventually, we found what seemed to be the right place, in a dark little gap off some anonymous little street. The sort of place you’d never know existed unless you were actually looking for it. I pressed a buzzer on the wall and this big door opened up. I didn’t know what to think, but the lost thing made an approving sort of noise. It seemed as good a time as any to say goodbye to each other. So we did.

Then I went home to classify my bottle-top collection. Well, that’s it. That’s the story. Not especially profound, I know, but I never said it was.

And don’t ask me what the moral is. I mean, I can’t say that the thing actually belonged in the place where it ended up. In fact, none of the things there really belonged. They all seemed happy enough though, so maybe that didn’t matter. I don’t know…

I still think about that lost thing from time to time. Especially when I see something out of the corner of my eye that doesn’t quite fit. You know, something with a weird, sad, lost sort of look. I see that sort of thing less and less these days though. Maybe there aren’t many lost things around anymore.

Or maybe I’ve just stopped noticing them. Too busy doing other stuff, I guess.

Book Review

How would you summarise the plot of The Lost Thing?

What do you think about the characters in the story?

What do you notice especially?

Would you recommend this book to others?

Wednesday

1. Look carefully at illustrations Look at Arthur Robbins’ Illustrations. They’re drawn to

accompany a poem. What could the story be? Choose one of the pictures and think about each of the Picture

Prompts. Write down your answers as sentences.

2. Read and listen to a poem Listen to Macavity the Mystery Cat read by the poet, TS Eliot.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mz29e3lv3Js Follow the words of the poem as you do. Choose part of the poem and practise reading it aloud yourself.

Read Top Tips for Reading a Poem Aloud to help you.

Arthur Robbins’ Illustrations

Thursday

1. Fill in missing words Read Cloze. Try to think of the words that could go in the black

spaces. You might remember the original words or you might think of new words that could work as well.

When you have finished, check the original version of the poem.

2. Write a custody record! Go through the poem and highlight all the descriptions of

Macavity’s appearance. Now highlight any details of Macavity’s crimes. Use this information to fill in the Police Custody Record for

Macavity. Give a clear description and describe the crime. Imagine what Macavity might say!

Well done! Show a grown-up the custody record you wrote. Show them where in the poem you got your ideas from.

3. Learn some of the poem by heart Read Tips for Learning a Poem by Heart. Try learning some of the poem by heart. Pick just one verse at

first. Challenge yourself to learn more verses. Play the recording. Join in with verses you’ve learnt by heart:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mz29e3lv3Js Try this Fun-Time Extra

Ask someone to test you on the verses that you have learnt. Get them to read the verses but to leave out words. Say the words they miss.

Macavity - Cloze

Macavity's a Mystery Cat: he's called the Hidden Paw—For he's the master criminal who can defy the Law.He's the bafflement of Scotland Yard, the Flying Squad's despair:For when they reach the scene of crime—Macavity's not there!

Macavity, Macavity, there's no one like Macavity,He's broken every human law, he breaks the law of gravity.His powers of levitation would make a fakir stare,And when you reach the scene of crime—Macavity's not there!You may seek him in the basement, you may look up in the air—But I tell you once and once again, Macavity's not there!

Macavity's a ginger cat, he's very tall and thin;You would know him if you saw him, for his eyes are sunken in.His brow is deeply lined with thought, his head is highly domed;His coat is dusty from neglect, his whiskers are uncombed.

Macavity – The Mystery Cat

Macavity's a Mystery Cat: he's called the Hidden Paw—For he's the master criminal who can defy the Law.He's the bafflement of Scotland Yard, the Flying Squad's despair:For when they reach the scene of crime—Macavity's not there!

Macavity, Macavity, there's no one like Macavity,He's broken every human law, he breaks the law of gravity.His powers of levitation would make a fakir stare,And when you reach the scene of crime—Macavity's not there!You may seek him in the basement, you may look up in the air—But I tell you once and once again, Macavity's not there!

Macavity's a ginger cat, he's very tall and thin;You would know him if you saw him, for his eyes are sunken in.His brow is deeply lined with thought, his head is highly domed;His coat is dusty from neglect, his whiskers are uncombed.He sways his head from side to side, with movements like a snake;And when you think he's half asleep, he's always wide awake.

Macavity, Macavity, there's no one like Macavity,For he's a fiend in feline shape, a monster of depravity.

By T.S. Eliot

You may meet him in a by-street, you may see him in the square—But when a crime's discovered, then Macavity's not there!

He's outwardly respectable. (They say he cheats at cards.)And his footprints are not found in any file of Scotland Yard'sAnd when the larder's looted, or the jewel-case is rifled,Or when the milk is missing, or another Peke's been stifled,Or the greenhouse glass is broken, and the trellis past repairAy, there's the wonder of the thing! Macavity's not there!

And when the Foreign Office find a Treaty's gone astray,Or the Admiralty lose some plans and drawings by the way,There may be a scrap of paper in the hall or on the stair—But it's useless to investigate—Macavity's not there!And when the loss has been disclosed, the Secret Service say:It must have been Macavity!'—but he's a mile away.You'll be sure to find him resting, or a-licking of his thumb;Or engaged in doing complicated long division sums.

Macavity, Macavity, there's no one like Macavity,There never was a Cat of such deceitfulness and suavity.He always has an alibi, and one or two to spare:At whatever time the deed took place—Macavity wasn’t there! And they say that all the Cats whose wicked deeds are widely known(I might mention Mungojerrie, I might mention Griddlebone)Are nothing more than agents for the Cat who all the timeJust controls their operations: the Napoleon of Crime!

Police Custody RecordPersonal Details (Name, Address, Gender, Age, Height, Other Descriptors)

Reasons for arrest

Date Time Arresting Officers

Arrested at

Arrived station

Comments made by person at time of arrest

Declaration of Rights

A notice setting out my rights has been read to me and I have been given a copy.

Signature:

Time:

Date:

Top tips for learning a poem by heart

Read the poem aloud several times slowly.

Copy the poem out a couple of times.

Be strategic. Pick a poem with a pattern, metre and rhyme are much easier to learn by heart than free verse.

Learn and internalise the “story” in the poem

Understand the poem by knowing every word’s meaning

With a card, cover everything but the first line of the poem. Read it. Look away, see the line in the air, and say it. Look back. Repeat until you’ve “got it.”

Uncover the second line. Learn it as you did the first line, but also add second line to first, until you’ve got the two.

Then it’s on to three. Always repeat the first line on down, till the whole poem sings.

New Bradwell Primary School Year 5 learning from home pack

Friday

1. 121 x 2 2. 123 x 33. 125 x 4 4. 120 x 3 5. 15.2 x 6 6. 13.8 x 7

See if you can learn to draw these amazing african animals

http://www.supercoloring.com/drawing-tutorials/tags/african-animals

New Bradwell Primary School Year 5 learning from home pack