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Year 4

Understanding the setting and characters in 'The Borrowers'

I can understand the setting and characters in ‘The Borrowers’.

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New
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Year 4

Understanding the setting and characters in 'The Borrowers'

I can understand the setting and characters in ‘The Borrowers’.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. The opening introduces the Clock family as the main characters and describes the setting of their home.
  2. The Clock family live under the kitchen floorboards and access the upstairs through a hole at the bottom of a clock.
  3. The Clock family’s home is made up of items borrowed from the human “beans”, which are used in new ways.
  4. A character trait is a special quality that makes a character in a story unique or interesting.
  5. We can infer different character traits of Pod, Homily and Arrietty through exploring their experiences and actions.

Keywords

  • Setting - where the story takes place

  • Inference - to use clues from within the text to draw conclusions

  • Character traits - the special qualities that make a character in a story unique and interesting

Common misconception

Children may find it difficult to distinguish between feelings and character traits.

Explain that feelings tend to be temporary and shifting but character traits are more permanent. Explore how lots of people feel 'nervous' from time to time, but that it appears as a regular part of Homily's interactions, making it a character trait.

Create a mind map detailing some of the key items within the Clock family's home to support children with drawing the setting for Task A in Cycle One.
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

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Starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
True or false? 'The Borrowers' is a historical fiction text.
Correct Answer: false, False
Q2.
What makes ‘The Borrowers’ a fantasy fiction novel?
It was written in 1952.
Correct answer: It is about miniature people who borrow from big humans.
It was adapted into a film in 1997.
Q3.
What is the name of the protagonist in 'The Borrowers'?
Mary Norton
Correct answer: Arrietty
Pod
Boy
Q4.
Order the four main parts of a story structure.
1 - opening
2 - build-up
3 - climax
4 - resolution
Q5.
Why does Pod come home distressed in the build-up of the story?
He couldn't find the items he was hoping to "borrow".
Correct answer: He had been “seen” by one of the “human beans” upstairs.
He had lost Arrietty on their expedition.
Q6.
When Mrs Driver (the lady who owns the house) finds out about the Borrowers, what does she do?
Correct answer: She hires a rat catcher.
She gets diggers to destroy under the kitchen.
She invites them up to join her in the main house.

Exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Match the vocabulary to the correct definition.
Correct Answer:fortress,a large, strong building that can be defended from attack

a large, strong building that can be defended from attack

Correct Answer:clasps,a device with interlocking parts used for fastening things together

a device with interlocking parts used for fastening things together

Correct Answer:grating,a framework of parallel or crossed bars, typically preventing access

a framework of parallel or crossed bars, typically preventing access

Q2.
Which member of the Clock family was the only one who knew their way upstairs to borrow from the human "beans"?
Correct answer: Pod
Homily
Arrietty
Q3.
Match the vocabulary to the correct definition.
Correct Answer:trinket box,a small box commonly used to store jewellery

a small box commonly used to store jewellery

Correct Answer:settle,an old-fashioned piece of furniture with a long seat and high back

an old-fashioned piece of furniture with a long seat and high back

Correct Answer:pedestal,the supporting column of something (e.g. a statue or table top)

the supporting column of something (e.g. a statue or table top)

Q4.
True or false? Homily was proud of their living room.
Correct Answer: True, true
Q5.
How do we identify character traits?
They are explicitly written and we retrieve them.
Correct answer: We infer them from a character's experiences and actions.
We guess them.
Q6.
Match the character action to the character trait that can be inferred from it.
Correct Answer:fussy,Homily fretted about Arrietty keeping her jersey clean.

Homily fretted about Arrietty keeping her jersey clean.

Correct Answer:dutiful,Arrietty stopped writing in her diary to help her mother.

Arrietty stopped writing in her diary to help her mother.

Correct Answer:dependable,Pod was on a mission to borrow items for the family.

Pod was on a mission to borrow items for the family.