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Year 3

Developing a personal response to 'Marcy and the Riddle of the Sphinx':

I can develop my own response to 'Marcy and the Riddle of the Sphinx'.

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New
New
Year 3

Developing a personal response to 'Marcy and the Riddle of the Sphinx':

I can develop my own response to 'Marcy and the Riddle of the Sphinx'.

Download all resources
Share activities with pupils

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. 'Marcy and the Riddle of the Sphinx' contains important themes relevant to traditional myths and modern life experiences
  2. A theme is a big idea, topic of message that recurs in a story.
  3. Marcy displays courage, integrity and resilience, among other qualities, in her quest.
  4. Readers can interpret a text, its themes and its meaning in different ways.
  5. Discussing books with others can deepen our understanding and allow us to develop our own views.

Common misconception

Children might think there is only one right answer to what message a story is trying to convey.

Authors understand that readers infer different meaning from their stories and are able to develop their own responses and opinions to them.

Keywords

  • Theme - a big idea, topic or message that recurs in a story

  • Interpretation - the process of understanding and assigning meaning to something

  • Perspective - a personal point of view or opinion

  • Discussion - the action or process of talking about something to exchange ideas

Encourage the children to act out different parts of the story in small groups, highlighting the characters feelings and also the characteristics shown through their actions. This will support the children's understanding of the story and its themes.
Teacher tip

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

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Starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
What is the definition of a modern myth?
a traditional tale explaining a culture's beliefs and customs
Correct answer: a tale that has elements of traditional myths but has been adapted to fit today
a fictional story involving magic
Q2.
Match the Egyptian God to their action within the story, 'Marcy and the Riddle of the Sphinx'.
Correct Answer:Thoth,sends Marcy to retrieve the moon eye from the sun god

sends Marcy to retrieve the moon eye from the sun god

Correct Answer:Ra,helps Marcy rescue her father by giving her his sun eye

helps Marcy rescue her father by giving her his sun eye

Correct Answer:Nut,helps by guiding the boat safely through the night

helps by guiding the boat safely through the night

Q3.
Why is Marcy unable to steal the moon eye from Ra?
Correct answer: She realises he could be a good and kind god and it doesn't feel right.
She tries, but the other gods on the boat stop her.
She gets too scared and goes back home.
Q4.
How does Marcy benefit from her decision to be honest with Ra?
Ra gives her his moon eye so that she can guide her way through the night.
Correct answer: Ra gives her his sun eye so that she can rescue her father from the Sphinx.
Ra takes her home and rescues her father for her.
Q5.
How does Marcy's adventure to rescue her father help her?
She faces her fear of travelling and overcomes it.
Correct answer: She faces her fear of the dark and overcomes it.
She faces her fear of animals and overcomes it.
Q6.
Match the vocabulary to the correct definition.
Correct Answer:integrity,the quality of being honest and having strong morals

the quality of being honest and having strong morals

Correct Answer:empathy,the ability to understand and share the feelings of another

the ability to understand and share the feelings of another

Correct Answer:courage,the willingness to do something frightening or difficult

the willingness to do something frightening or difficult

Exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Match the vocabulary to the correct definition.
Correct Answer:interpretation,the process of assigning meaning to something

the process of assigning meaning to something

Correct Answer:perspective,a personal point of view or opinion

a personal point of view or opinion

Correct Answer:discussion,the process of talking about something to exchange ideas

the process of talking about something to exchange ideas

Q2.
What is a theme within a story?
an idea, topic or message that appears once
the genre that a story belongs to
Correct answer: a big idea, topic or message that recurs
Q3.
What themes appear through the qualities Marcy shows in ‘Marcy and the Riddle of the Sphinx’?
Correct answer: courage
Correct answer: resilience
betrayal
Correct answer: integrity
cruelty
Q4.
Match the vocabulary to the correct definition.
Correct Answer:courage,the willingness to do something frightening or difficult

the willingness to do something frightening or difficult

Correct Answer:resilience,the mental ability to withstand or overcome difficulties

the mental ability to withstand or overcome difficulties

Correct Answer:integrity,the quality of being honest and having strong morals

the quality of being honest and having strong morals

Q5.
True or False? There is only one correct way to interpret a story and people need to agree on their perspectives.
Correct Answer: False, false
Q6.
What possible lessons could be learnt from 'Marcy and the Riddle of the Sphinx'?
Things are scary for a reason, so you should never face your fears.
Correct answer: Showing integrity in our actions helps to build positive relationships.
Correct answer: Showing resilience can help us to overcome difficult situations.
You should travel to Egypt on a wind weaver and meet the gods.
Correct answer: Through showing courage, we can overcome some fears.