Session 3

Focus objective

To use drama techniques to explore a key moment in a plot

Key teaching approaches

• Reading aloud
• Drama: freeze-frame
• Captions
• Discussion

Begin the session by reading Chapter 2 'The Stick Man'.  Have a whole-class discussion about what is happening in this chapter. Is Mr Spink right or wrong to ask the family to leave? Organise the children into groups of five and ask them to choose a scene from this chapter to portray using 'freeze-frame' and ask them to think of a caption for their freeze-frame, for example 'No rent, no room...'  or 'The Stick Man arrives.' The children could write their caption on a large sheet of paper and place it in front of their freeze-frame. Ask each group to show their freeze-frame to the rest of the class and discuss the ways they have portrayed how the members of the family are feeling. You may choose to take digital images and annotate these for later use. Then, working in the same groups, ask the children to talk about what the family could do to escape their situation and what they themselves might do in a similar position. End the session by giving each child a sticky note and asking them to write down their idea about what Jim and his family should do next. The sticky notes can be collected and stuck in the class reading journal.

Read Chapter 3 'Rosie and Judd' before the next session (either as a class or independently).