[return to list of lecture notes]

VII. FANTASY AND SCIENCE FICTION  © 2006 Nancy Polette 

1.The BFG by Roald Dahl
Horrible giants are eating little children all over the world. Sophie with the help of the BFG tries to stop them. 
A. Introducing Vocabulary: 
Label each word: a person (P), food (F), animal (A). Guess if you do not know. 

_____cannybull  _____hippodumpling  _____tottlers _____crocadowndilly
_____frobscottle _____scrumplet  _____chidlers  _____snozcumbers


Support or deny your guesses by reading the booktalk. 

When the BFG snatched Sophie out of her bed the little tottler thought the BFG was a cannybull and would eat her. "No", he said, "I only eat snozcumbers and drink frobscottle...but, my little scrumplet, you must help me save the world's chidlers from the bad giants. They are worse than any crocodowndilly or hippodumpling you have in your zoo!" "How?" Sophie asked. And the answer to that question is what this book is all about.

 

2. MATILDA by Roald Dahl 
Matilda is a gifted five-year-old whose parents don't want to be bothered with her. At school Miss Trunchbull, the head mistress is feared by all, except Matilda! 
In small groups write about one "What IF" below. 
A. You put superglue up your nose and stuck your finger in it.
B. You could make things move simply by looking at them.

3. THE IRON GIANT by Ted Hughes 
Which is scarier. a huge iron giant or a creature from outer space? 
A. Brainstorm: All the things on a farm made of metal. 
Predict: What problems would arise if all metal farm items disappeared? 

Responding To The Novel. 

Activities suggested in this section which can be applied to any novel study include: 
A. Displaying literary style and using it in the student's own writing. 
B. Creative writing using color words to respond to a visual image. 
C. Examining the structure of a news article and writing a news article. 
D. Problem Solving based on the story situation. 
E. Research activities tied to the subject matter of the novel and resulting in unique products such as: 
    1. A Fact & Fiction Book 
    2. Riddle Poem 
    3. Acrostic Poem 
    4. Alliterative Report 
    5. Bio Poem 
    6. Write a Letter Report

See also these literature guides found on this web site.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
The Whipping Boy
The Wizard of Oz