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Activities to do after reading a Paul Jennings book
Rogue's Gallery - Read a few of Paul's stories and pick out the mean characters. Choose one and build up a profile on that character. Here are a few ideas to start you off:.
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Draw the character. Include physical features such as colour and style of hair, shape of face, eyes, nose and mouth. Don't forget to dress the character in appropriate clothing. How does this person walk and talk and what would be his / her hobbies or favourite pastimes? Make a list of words to describe your character's behaviour. Make a list or draw some pictures showing the mean things the character has done in the stories. Make a wanted poster using some of these ideas. |
Draw the character. To make it more interesting you may be able to collect and use ribbons, tinsel, beads and sequins, buttons, material, paints, crayons and old gift wrapping paper.
Write a description of why you like this character. You might talk about what the character looks like. What the character does in the story that you like.
Does this character remind you of anyone you know; a friend, a relation or another book character.
To make a class or small group Popularity Contest, you can hang other people's examples up on the wall and vote for the funniest, the weirdest, the most charming, the most different, the happiest, the most mysterious.
Each person could give a short talk to the class about their character. Ham it up. Exaggerate the features of your character's physical appearance and behaviour.
Where in the
World - If you have read
some of Paul's stories, select a favourite one and think about where
it might be set. Look for clues as you read or reread the story. For
example, what is the weather like? Does Paul mention any particular
places like rivers, the seaside, a desert, mountains, the city, or a
country town? If there are no clues then you might like to make up a
setting. Could the story be set on a boat, an aeroplane, in a dungeon
or cellar, a cave, a train, or a country you don't know much about.
You might like to look up an atlas to help you select an interesting
country. You might even find some books to tell you more about that
country.
Mix and
Match - If you are a Paul
Jennings fan and you have read a lot of his stories, then you might
like to have a bit of FUN. You could select the beginning of a story,
use some ideas from other stories, then, choose an ending that you
like. You might end up with a great story or just a mad bunch of
ideas. In your class, who can create the wackiest story from some of
the ideas in Paul's collections.
Literary
Letters - If you have just
finished reading a Paul Jenning's story you might like to compose a
letter to one of the characters. Think about how the character is
feeling in the story. Is she / he sad, happy, frightened, curious,
mischievous, funny, shy, bossy or any other emotion you can think of.
Write a letter to this imaginary character. What is the problem that
the character had in the story? Tell them what you feel about their
problem and ask them how they feel.
You even be able to give them some ideas to solve or avoid that problem. Or just some sympathy might do. You might want to tell them if you have had a similar problem. Maybe you might just want to write a 'pen pal' type of letter where you introduce yourself by writing a profile on what you are like. You might even be able to compare yourself with the character. * This is a good activity to with a character that has been your favourite because you will feel close to this character.
Quirky Quiz
- You can work in pairs to
interview each other on a story or stories from some of Paul Jennings
collections. A list of questions about the story or about characters
in the story can be made up. The person being interviewed can see the
questions before the interview if they want to. The audience may want
to ask questions as well.
Book
Talk - Work in pairs or a
small group to spend some time talking and thinking about a story
after you have read it.
