Expedition Diaries African Savannah by Simon Chapman

I am the sort of person that likes to get their travel experiences vicariously. I do not need to find mice in my rucksack, worry about being impaled on a cow’s horns or try and find a lift halfway back across Africa in time to catch a flight. I am always very early for my flights!

It’s just as well then that Simon Chapman, a real-life explorer, author and illustrator, has created a whole series of Expedition Diaries from the Australian Outback to the Indian Lowlands with mountains and rainforests in between for me to experience the places.  The latest book, African Savannah, is about Simon’s journey through Botswana, into the wetlands of the Okvango Delta and on to the semi-desert of Namibia.

The diary opens with an overview of the expedition, a kit list, information about the Kalahari Basin and a map showing an outline of the trip.  The information is placed on the page in snippets with post-its, maps and photos making the layout engaging and non-threatening to those who have not yet developed the stamina to read dense prose!  Also included are sketches and water-colour paintings of animals and places seen along the way.

The diary follows a day by day account describing the highs and lows in a mix of fonts: handwritten, normal publishing font and typewriter like font, although I am not sure that Chapman would use a typewriter. It does, however, have the effect of distinguishing different types of text on the page. We get a sense of how Chapman feels about his adventures through the use of larger fonts and descriptions of emotions. Let’s face it. Who would ever forget a cheetah licking the salt off their legs?

Every school library should have a few books from this series in their library – if not all of them – mostly to be read by KS2 children.  This book and series would also make a good book for teaching writing particularly to Upper KS2 children.  I say Upper KS2 because of the different voices used in the writing that provide a clear model for children. It links well with ‘Understanding physical and human geography’ and would therefore provide a useful English/literacy unit of work running alongside a place of study.

Grammar that could be taught through this book:

Write more formally but including a lot of information using

  • longer, multi-clause sentences
  • embedding extra information in sentences with commas
  • a range of clauses, some starting with -ing (present participle) and -ed (past participle), e.g. rising up 383m from it’s base
  • present passive, e.g. is found, is littered, is washed

Write more informally using

  • first person
  • range of fonts for emphasis
  • punctuation for emphasis (!) and brackets to contain extra information
  • longer noun phrases, e.g kudu with huge spiral horns, their skin coated with red ochre (symbolising earth and blood)
  • time adverbials, e.g. right now, just, two and a half hours later

You can purchase a copy here by clicking on the image. (Affiliate link)

The Wonky Donkey by Craig Smith illustrated by Katz Cowley

I laughed out loud when I read this book in the book shop and that was before I knew there was a video of a granny in hysterics reading this to a grandchild . The book was originally published in 2010 but the video went viral and so it has been republished and didn’t we miss a treat first time round!

The premise is quite simple but beautifully executed. The patterned text starts off

I was walking down the road and I saw… a donkey, Hee Haw and he only had three legs!

He was a wonky donkey.

This cumulative pattern continues but the next time he only has three legs and one eye!  He is of course a winky wonky donkey.  This makes me laugh every time I read it. And so it goes on.

It is a perfect book for reading aloud to a KS1 class (I bet KS2 would enjoy it too) where they can join in.  It would also make a great poetry unit of work where you could add more words to the list. I was thinking about him liking to write and being ‘an inky winky wonky donkey’. Alternatively, you could use a different animal. The trick is it needs to end in an /ee/ sound so you might have to add this sound to an animal, e.g. doggy. The vowels do not have to stay the same so it could be a boggy-soggy saggy waggy  foggy doggy.

This book would make a great guided reading book for Phase 5+ (Letters and Sounds) guided reading session and a text to teach writing.

You can buy the book here by clicking on the image. (Affiliate link)

What’s the Difference? 40 Pairs of the Seemingly Similar by Emma Strack

Okay, so what is the difference between a Viper and a Garter Snake, a sea and an ocean or a basilica and a cathedral?

The illustrations by Guillaume Plantevin use colour often in opposition to exemplify the similarities and differences between the subjects and would be a great way to introduce children to the world of infographics.

The pages are all laid out in a similar manner with an introduction, essential facts about the two subjects and then differences explored under the circular images.

There is a difference in the way that the introduction  – more informal – is written in comparison with the facts and information – more formal – under the circular images.

The book is full of information and trivia and will appeal to those children who love facts.

This is a wonderful book in both content and layout and should be in every school library.

Grammar that could be taught through this book:

More formal writing established through

  • adjectives after the noun, e.g. the knit cap, soft and without harsh edges,
  • -ing clauses, e.g. covering the head
  • -ed clauses, e.g. called a ski mask
  • technical vocabulary, e.g. bandits, incognito, latex,

More informal writing established through

  • written in second person
  • use of questions
  • more informal punctuation, e.g. !, -, …
  • starting with ‘But’ to introduce the question, e.g. But what is the difference between these two conduits?, But is it a virus or a bacteria?
  • use of brackets to provide extra information

This would make a good book for teaching writing and for use in guided reading in Upper KS2.  Perfect!

Buy the book here (affiliate link)

Seven Ways to Trick a Troll by Lise Lunge Larsen

I am always on the lookout for traditional stories to use with KS2 pupils and it isn’t easy to find them.  There are books such as Blackberry Blue by Jamila Gavin which play around with the traditional tales, mixing them up and making new stories. There are the subverted stories such as those by Beth Woollvin (Little Red, Rapunzel and Hansel and Gretl) which I love. In these the female characters are often feisty and do something unexpected. But there is not often I find traditional tales that are traditional but not necessarily well-known.

Well, Seven Ways to Trick a Troll is just such a book. The premise of the book is that Trolls,  creatures that are unpleasant and unkind, are not particularly bright and therefore it is possible to trick them. Each trick is introduced and there then follows a story which illustrates how the trolls are tricked in this manner. For example,

Troll Weakness One

Trolls hate loud noise, especially the sound of bells.

Trolls cab have several heads. This makes them especially hideous to look at and confusing to listen to because sometimes the heads talk at the same time. These many-headed trolls are prone to unbearable headaches brought on by loud noise. This is to your advantage.

The story that then follows – Little Goose – who tricks the troll by asking the villagers to blow their whistles, ring their bells and bang their pots and pans to scare off the troll.  This pattern is followed for the seven tricks and makes a structure for the book that is easily replicable: Five Ways to Catch a Wolf, Six Ways to Trap a Giant etc.

At the end of the book is a section How to Spot a Troll and then there are the Sources which details where the stories have come from.  It would be perfectly possible for Upper KS2 to write their own version of the book and for Lower KS2 to write a group version, each child writing just one story to go in the book.

Grammar that could be taught through the book:

  • Showing character through dialogue verbs- it might be interesting to study to show character. For instance, which of these verbs might be used for a troll and which for the hero? Grunted, fretted, grumbled, called, drooled, cooed, said, and exclaimed.
  • Creating tension through the use of -ing clauses in multi-clause sentences, e.g. exploring this underground world, forgetting all caution, shaking with rage.
  • Providing cohesion through time adverbials
  • The difference between the narrative writing and How to Spot a Troll.

This book would make a great book for KS2 teaching of writing.