The Grotlyn by Benji Davies - a beautifully illustrated rhyming tale about things that go bump in the night. Perfect for readers 4 and up. The Grotlyn was very busy sneaking about the streets. In this word search are fifteen words that describe things the Grotlyn did or was doing. Can you find them all?

Midnight is the time when all children are fast asleep, except of course for… the Midnight Gang. That is when their adventures are just beginning… Who will you share the midnight magic with? Draw your friends!

Try to imagine Sam’s birthdays from Ruby’s perspective. Write Ruby’s diary entry for one day of Sam’s birthday year – you can pick one of the birthdays described in the book, or make up one of your own.

Challenge your friends to come up with the funniest captions for Spock. Begin your captions with the words – “Spock looked at Sam with a strong sense of…”

The activities in Exploring Character can be used to meet the NC requirements in KS2 English to develop an understanding and appreciation of literary texts, including modern fiction by significant children’s authors. And in particular it can help children to: * recognise the choice, use and effect of figurative language, vocabulary and the effects of language * identify how character is created * respond imaginatively, drawing on the whole text.

(a) Think about how Frank and Gilbert feel at different points in the story. What might they write in their diaries? Imagine you are each character. Choose an exciting part of the story. Write diary extracts for each character. (b) Extract Grid

Task: Can you explain what the words highlighted in this extract mean? Did you know that reading The 1,000-year-old Boy will help you to improve your knowledge of, and ability to use, new and interesting vocabulary? Challenge yourself to find out what all of the words on the next pages mean.

Task: Create a leaflet to promote The Saxon Experience that would appeal to children like Aidan, Alfie and Roxy. Think about what might make the visit more fun and engaging for them. Use information from the story as well as your imagination. You may also like to research similar places to get ideas.

Task: Imagine you are Kezia. Write a letter to your maman and papa after they were taken away. You could write as if they have only just been taken or you could write at the point that they have been gone for a while and life has carried on at the farm. Use information from the story and your own imagination. • What are you writing to say? • What might you ask? • How might things have been different? • How much detail will you include in explaining your feelings?

Make your own glasses to look just like Bad Nana! Bad Nana is a KS1-aligned, highly illustrated series for young readers. Bad Nana: Older Not Wiser is available now.

A pack of eleven resource sheets for Key Stage 2 classes related to The Sand Dog by Sarah Lean - author of A Dog Called Homeless. English curriculum links covered include: Maintain positive attitudes to reading - increasing familiarity with wide range of books Understand what they read - drawing inferences such as character’s feelings, thoughts, motives and justifying with evidence Understand what they read - identify how language, structure and presentation contribute to meaning Understand what they read - checking the text makes sense to them, asking questions to improve understanding Understand what they read - summarize the main ideas and identify key details to support them Cross-curricular links included: Geography

A comprehensive set of Key Stage 2 teaching resources to use with Boy Underwater by Adam Baron - named Waterstones Children’s Book of the Month, June 2018. Twenty-seven activities in all - one for each chapter of the book to facilitate classroom while reading the book together without having to wait to finish. Most chapters also have discussion points. Curriculum links covered include: Understand what they read - asking and answering questions to improve their understanding Understand what they read - identifying how language, structure and presentation contribute to meaning Understand what they read - discuss and evaluate how authors use language Understand what they read - drawing inferences such as character’s feelings, thoughts and motives Understand what they read - checking that the book makes sense to them, discussing understanding and exploring the meaning of words in context Understand what they read - summarizing the main ideas, identifying key details to support Understand what they read - predicting what might happen from details supplied and implied Maintain positive attitudes to reading - identifying and discussing themes and conventions Maintain positive attitudes to reading - preparing poems and plays to read aloud and perform Maintain positive attitudes to reading - recommending books that they have read to their peers Maintain positive attitudes to reading - increasing their familiarity with a wide range of books Maintain positive attitudes to reading - participate in discussions about books Maintain positive attitudes to reading - explain and discuss their understanding of what they have read Discuss and evaluate how authors use language

David Walliams’ Fing activity sheets for 7-12 year olds.

The Ice Monster, the epic adventure from multi-million bestselling author David Walliams, takes our heroine Elsie on a voyage from the Natural History Museum to the icy North Pole! At the Museum, she meets the wicked Professor, who brings the Ice Monster back to life with his incredible machine… This British Science Week, we’re celebrating the amazing scientific achievements of the Natural History Museum, and imagining all the marvelous inventions we could create! Suitable for KS2 pupils.

Task: Hold a class debate to discuss whether the Caporal was a good man or a bad man. Use the cards to develop your arguments for and against the Caporal being good/bad. Try to reach a class consensus. • Complete the cards with information from the story • Think about the events in the story from different characters’ perspectives • Think about the meanings of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ • Cut up the cards and distribute them amongst learners in the group • Ask each learner to expand upon and justify their card • Hold a hands up class vote to conclude whether the Caporal was a good man or a bad man

(a) Word search Task: Can you find all of the words below from the book in the word search?  The words can go up, down, left, right or diagonal. (b) Word search answers

Meet the characters from Sophy Henn’s first young fiction series Bad Nana! Bad Nana is a KS1-aligned, highly illustrated series for young readers. Bad Nana: Older Not Wiser is available now.

TASK: Retell the story of how a jolly woodman became a tin woodman using a comic strip style. CURRICULUM LINKS: (KS1) Develop pleasure in reading, motivation to read, vocabulary and understanding by: discussing the sequence of events in books and how items of information are related becoming increasingly familiar with and retelling a wider range of stories, fairy stories and traditional stories CURRICULUM LINKS: (KS2) Understand what they read, in books they can read independently, by: summarising the main ideas drawn from more than one paragraph, identifying key details that support the main ideas asking questions to improve their understanding

TASK: Use information from Chapter Twelve to help you solve the crossword puzzle. CURRICULUM LINKS: (KS1) Understand both the books that they can already read accurately and fluently and those that they listen to by: drawing on what they already know or on background information and vocabulary provided by the teacher answering and asking questions CURRICULUM LINKS: (KS2) Understand what they read, in books they can read independently, by: checking that the text makes sense to them, discussing their understanding and explaining the meaning of words in context asking questions to improve their understanding

Imagine that you are a party planner and you have been asked to organise one of Sam’s parties. Decide upon a party theme first and then persuade Sam why your theme choice is a good theme.