New
New
Year 7
Reading 'The Twisted Tree': exploring the opening
I can make predictions about a new text and understand how a character is introduced.
New
New
Year 7
Reading 'The Twisted Tree': exploring the opening
I can make predictions about a new text and understand how a character is introduced.
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Lesson details
Key learning points
- The cover, blurb and dedication of a book can give you important details about the themes.
- The novel is dedicated to Odin, who is a Norse god and an inspiration to poets.
- A protagonist refers to the main character of a story.
- Martha is blind in one eye because of an accident.
- Martha can feel other people’s emotions and thoughts through their clothing.
Keywords
Hubbub - a busy, noisy situation
Patronising - treat in a way that is apparently kind, but shows superiority
Jaunty - lively, cheerful or self-confident manner
Unfurled - spread out something which was rolled up
Disfigured - to spoil the appearance of something
Common misconception
The front cover is just for 'show' and a way to identify a book.
The images and font on a front cover can give you lots of clues about themes and genre.
When reading the text, try different independent reading strategies. For example, 'control the game'. Select students at random to read, jumping from pupil to pupil after a couple of sentences.
Teacher tip
Equipment
You will need access to the text: 'The Twisted Tree' by Rachel Burge, published by Hot Key Books, 2019.
Content guidance
- Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
- Depiction or discussion of peer pressure or bullying
- Depiction or discussion of mental health issues
Supervision
Adult supervision required
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.
Which of these would you not expect to find on a novel's front cover?
title of the book
author's name
publisher's logo
art work
Q2.
What is a character?
a type of plot
a main theme
Q3.
What does it mean to predict?
state the exact meaning of something
recall historical data on a particular event
Q4.
What is a book's blurb?
A list of awards the book has won.
The author's biography.
A detailed analysis of the characters.
Q5.
'The Twisted Tree' is a novel. What is a novel?
a work of non-fiction that tells a story about life and the world
a short, rhythmic work involving rhyme
a literary work written for the theatre that uses dialogue
Q6.
What do we mean by 'the writer's intentions'?
the writer's thoughts and feelings towards the reader
the writer's life and their experiences
the career ambitions a writer has - what they intend to do next
Exit quiz
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6 Questions
Q1.
What is the name of the main character in 'The Twisted Tree'?
Q2.
In Chapter 1 of 'The Twisted Tree', Martha is boarding a plane. Where is she going?
Sweden
Finland
Denmark
Q3.
Exploring the blurb, front cover and dedication of a book can give you clues about the text. This reading skill is called ...
summary.
analysis.
fluency.
Q4.
What is a protagonist?
the villain
the setting
a supporting character
Q5.
'The Twisted Tree' has been described as a thriller, a mystery and horror. This refers to the of the text.
author
publisher
theme
Q6.
'The Twisted Tree' is written from Martha's perspective using the pronoun "I". This is an example of ...
second person.
third person.