New
New
Year 4

Discussing a section of 'The Borrowers'

I can read and discuss a section of the build-up in ‘The Borrowers’.

New
New
Year 4

Discussing a section of 'The Borrowers'

I can read and discuss a section of the build-up in ‘The Borrowers’.

warning

These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.

Switch to our new teaching resources now - designed by teachers and leading subject experts, and tested in classrooms.

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. In the build-up, Pod is “seen” by a human “bean” and this causes concern for the Clock family’s safety.
  2. Arrietty expresses her discontent being trapped under the floorboards and her desire to experience the world above.
  3. Homily persuades a reluctant Pod to take Arrietty borrowing.
  4. The Clock family have contrasting feelings about Arrietty going on a borrowing expedition.
  5. We can infer a character’s emotions from their actions, words and expressions.

Keywords

  • Build up - the building of action and suspense that leads up to the climax in a narrative

  • Expedition - a journey undertaken for a specific purpose

  • Infer - to draw conclusions from information and evidence in the text

Common misconception

Some of the vocabulary and phrases in the text may be unfamiliar and even confusing. E.g. the use of the word "hollow" to describe Arrietty's "excitement".

Make a bank of unfamiliar vocabulary from the text and provide definitions. Explore interesting phrase choices. E.g. using the word "hollow" to describe Arrietty's "excitement" could imply that this is the only emotion she can feel.

Analyse the text further on pages 61 and 62 to infer the different feelings Arrietty experiences as she ventures to the clock for the first time.
Teacher tip

Equipment

You need a copy of the 2014 Puffin Books edition of ‘The Borrowers’ by Mary Norton for this lesson.

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).

Lesson video

Loading...

6 Questions

Q1.
What does it mean to summarise?
to retell a story in detail
to uncover hidden messages or meaning
Correct answer: to pull out the key information and ideas from a text
Q2.
What happens in the build-up of a narrative?
Correct answer: there is a building of action and suspense
the setting and characters are introduced
Correct answer: the problem is often introduced
the problem is resolved
Q3.
Where does the Clock family live?
in the kitchen cupboard of the house
in the garden of the house
Correct answer: under the floorboards of the house
Q4.
How do the Clock family survive underground?
They are given lots of gifts by the humans.
Correct answer: They borrow the items they need from the humans.
They buy the items they need from the shop.
Q5.
How does Pod Clock enter the upstairs?
through the kitchen floorboards
Correct answer: through a hole at the bottom of a hallway clock
through the stairs
Q6.
What does it mean to infer?
to sequence the events in the story
Correct answer: to draw greater conclusions or meaning from clues within the text
to retrieve information from the text

6 Questions

Q1.
What is the main problem encountered at the beginning of the build-up?
Pod injures himself.
Arrietty won't do what she is told.
Homily feels anxious.
Correct answer: Pod is "seen" by a human "bean" upstairs.
Q2.
True or false? Hearing about the upstairs and what had happened to Eggletina scared Arrietty.
Correct Answer: False, false
Q3.
What did Homily suggest Pod should do?
never go borrowing again
go borrowing but in disguise
Correct answer: teach Arrietty how to borrow
Q4.
Match the vocabulary to the correct definition.
Correct Answer:expedition,a journey undertaken for a specific purpose

a journey undertaken for a specific purpose

Correct Answer:hollow,having a hole or empty space inside

having a hole or empty space inside

Correct Answer:chute,a sloping channel or slide used for transporting things lower

a sloping channel or slide used for transporting things lower

Correct Answer:protested,expressed an objection to what someone said or did

expressed an objection to what someone said or did

Q5.
How did Arrietty show her mother she was “good” in order to prepare for her first borrowing expedition?
She read and wrote in her diary every day.
Correct answer: She helped with lots of house chores for weeks.
She dressed in really smart clothes.
Q6.
What clues can we search for in the text to infer how the different characters felt about Arrietty going borrowing?
Correct answer: their actions
the clothes they wear
Correct answer: their words
Correct answer: their expressions