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

Exploring the characters and key themes in 'The Journey'

I can understand the key themes and the characters’ emotions in ‘The Journey’.

Download all resources
Share activities with pupils
New
New
Year 3

Exploring the characters and key themes in 'The Journey'

I can understand the key themes and the characters’ emotions in ‘The Journey’.

Download all resources
Share activities with pupils

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. A theme is a big idea, topic or message that appears in a story.
  2. Themes in a story are used to convey deeper meaning and messages to the reader.
  3. ‘The Journey’ explores the following themes: war and conflict, resilience, hope and displacement.
  4. The girl’s emotions change throughout the narrative.
  5. Expressing thoughts and emotions is a key part of writing a diary entry.

Common misconception

Pupils might find it hard to understand the girl's comparison to the migrating birds at the end of the story.

The girl is comparing the birds' journey to her family's journey. The birds are also migrating to another country, but the difference is that the birds didn't have any difficulty crossing borders. Explore this comparison with pupils in detail.

Keywords

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

  • Character - a person, being, thing or animal in a story

  • Emotions - strong feelings that result from a person’s circumstances, mood, or relationship with others

  • Perspective - a person’s point of view

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

In learning cycle 1, the text should be read aloud to the pupils by an adult. Use illustrations from the book while reading the story to support discussions.
Teacher tip

Equipment

You will need a copy of the 2016 Flying Eye Books edition of ‘The Journey’ by Francesa Sanna for this lesson.

Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
  • Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering

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.
Who is the author of 'The Journey'?
Correct Answer: Francesca Sanna
Q2.
Who are the main characters in 'The Journey'?
the security guard
her mother's friends
the passengers on the boat
Correct answer: the girl, her sister, her mother
Q3.
What is an emotion?
Correct answer: a feeling
a piece of clothing
a thing you can touch
Q4.
Emotions always remain the same.
True
Correct answer: False
Q5.
What is the purpose of a diary entry?
to tell a fictional story
to provide factual information
Correct answer: to express your personal thoughts and emotions
to thank someone for something
Q6.
In 'The Journey', the girl and her sister were excited about the journey they were about to take.'
True
Correct answer: False

Exit quiz

Download exit quiz

6 Questions

Q1.
What is a theme?
Correct answer: a big idea, topic or message that appears in a story
the main character
something a character says
something a character feels
Q2.
Match the theme to the definition.
Correct Answer:war and conflict,violent dispute between states or nations

violent dispute between states or nations

Correct Answer:displacement ,the forced removal of a person from their home or country

the forced removal of a person from their home or country

Correct Answer:hope ,holding on to the belief that there will be a positive outcome

holding on to the belief that there will be a positive outcome

Correct Answer:resilience,adapting to and withstanding difficulties

adapting to and withstanding difficulties

Q3.
Put the following key moments in 'The Journey' in the correct order.
1 - A war begins in the country where the girls had been living happily.
2 - Their mother decides to flee their country to take them to a safer place.
3 - They are banned from crossing the border and they sleep overnight in the forest.
4 - They have a challenging ferry crossing over rough seas with fellow refugees.
5 - They take a train through many countries and they travel closer to a safe home.
Q4.
Which is the main way that the characters showed resilience in 'The Journey'?
They travelled for many weeks.
Correct answer: The continued to travel even when it was incredibly challenging.
They made friends on the boat.
They missed their friends at home.
Q5.
What is the definition of empathy?
the ability to feel sorry for someone else
Correct answer: the ability to understand and share the feelings of another
a strong feeling
Q6.
What is a refugee?
Correct answer: a person who has been forced to leave their country
a person who chose to leave their country
a person who never leaves their country