Skip to content
Oak National Academy
Oak National Academy
Teachers
Pupils
New
New
Year 3

Exploring emotions in the opening of 'The Firework Maker's Daughter'

I can identify Lila's emotions and develop thoughts that convey them.

Download all resources
Share activities with pupils
New
New
Year 3

Exploring emotions in the opening of 'The Firework Maker's Daughter'

I can identify Lila's emotions and develop thoughts that convey them.

Download all resources
Share activities with pupils

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. The opening of 'The Firework-Maker's Daughter' can be streamlined into four key moments.
  2. Lila's emotions shift and change over the course of these four key moments.
  3. Using empathy can help us develop a greater understanding of Lila's perspective.
  4. We can develop thoughts for Lila that convey and express her emotions.
  5. Emotions can be stated explicitly or conveyed through choice of words and phrases.

Common misconception

Children may find it difficult to convey certain emotions without explicitly stating the feeling.

Explore common informal phrases used for certain emotions. E.g. "I am down in the dumps" to convey sadness.

Keywords

  • Emotions - strong feelings resulting from circumstances, mood, or relationships with others

  • Perspective - a person's point of view

  • Empathy - the ability to understand other people’s feelings and points of view

Provide children with short extracts from the book that correspond with each of the four key points in the opening. This will support them in inferring emotions and they can use evidence from the text to support their answers.
Teacher tip

Equipment

You will need a copy of the 2018 Penguin Random House UK edition of ‘The Firework Maker's Daughter' by Philip Pullman for this lesson.

Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour

Supervision

Adult supervision recommended

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).

Video

Skip video

Loading...

Starter quiz

Download starter quiz

6 Questions

Q1.
What is an emotion?
Correct answer: a feeling
a piece of information
an idea
Q2.
True or false? Emotions always remain the same.
Correct Answer: False, false
Q3.
What is the purpose of a diary entry?
to tell a fictional story
Correct answer: to recount important experiences
to share your thoughts and emotions with others
Correct answer: to express your thoughts and emotions
Q4.
Which of the following are key linguistic features of a diary entry?
Correct answer: first person
Correct answer: informal language
rhyming words
third person
Q5.
Which of the following sentences would you see in Lila's diary entry?
I did not appreciate the circumstances my father had placed me in.
Correct answer: I was SO upset by the things my father said.
She was so upset when he told her she shouldn't be a firework-maker.
Q6.
True or false? Lila experiences a range of emotions in the opening of the story.
Correct Answer: True, true

Exit quiz

Download exit quiz

6 Questions

Q1.
Put the following key moments in the opening of 'The Firework-Maker's Daughter' in the correct order.
1 - Lila loved fireworks and shared her dream of being a firework-maker.
2 - Lila’s father told her she needed to find a husband instead.
3 - Lila learnt her father had told Chulak the secret to firework-making.
4 - Lila decided to leave home on her quest to the Volcano of Merapi.
Q2.
Match the emotions Lila experienced to the relevant points in the story.
Correct Answer:inspired, proud, excited,Lila loved fireworks and shared her dream of being a firework-maker.

Lila loved fireworks and shared her dream of being a firework-maker.

Correct Answer:upset, sad, deflated, lonely, confused,Lila’s father told her she needed to find a husband instead.

Lila’s father told her she needed to find a husband instead.

Correct Answer:furious, angry, betrayed,Lila learnt her father had told Chulak the secret to firework-making.

Lila learnt her father had told Chulak the secret to firework-making.

Correct Answer:determined, committed, nervous,Lila decided to leave home on her quest to the Volcano of Merapi.

Lila decided to leave home on her quest to the Volcano of Merapi.

Q3.
What does 'perspective' mean?
Correct answer: a point of view
the right answer
a disagreement
Q4.
What does 'empathy' mean?
the ability to walk along a path
the ability to read someone's mind
Correct answer: the ability to share and understand the feelings of another
Q5.
True or false? Stating the emotion you experienced is the only way to convey your feelings in a diary entry.
Correct Answer: False, false
Q6.
Match the emotions Lila experiences to an appropriate corresponding thoughts.
Correct Answer:upset,It broke my heart to even think about a future without fireworks.

It broke my heart to even think about a future without fireworks.

Correct Answer:betrayed,I cannot believe my own father would do this to me.

I cannot believe my own father would do this to me.

Correct Answer:determined,I WILL discover the secret to becoming the best firework-maker.

I WILL discover the secret to becoming the best firework-maker.