What is it?

Julia Donaldson’s stories are consistent favourites among children, parents and teachers. Her rhymes and repetition engage and entertain readers of many ages, and there are plenty of activities and creative planning ideas in this “Julia Donaldson” collection.

How to use it

For teachers planning a series of lessons on Donaldson, there are a number of resources, including a grid created by Fosse Way School, near Bath, which allows teachers to compare and contrast topics such as alliteration, rhyme and characterisation across different Donaldson titles.

RJR_38 has uploaded a highly detailed three-week literacy scheme based on her stories Room on the Broom, The Gruffalo, The Gruffalo’s Child and The Smartest Giant in Town. It looks at topics such as language choice and settings across the stories.

Of all the Donaldson stories, The Gruffalo is arguably the most popular. Resources focusing on this story include a missing words worksheet for five to seven-year-olds (misshunt), a question and answer sheet (Nicole_K) where pupils have to fill in speech bubbles, and a PowerPoint activity book featuring a Gruffalo word search, a maze and a crossword (clevercat10). Fun activities include a “bake a Gruffalo cake” resource, a template for a Gruffalo mask, and a treasure hunt.

For Room on the Broom, lauracowan87 has uploaded a Word version of the text for teachers to print out for the class, while Superkings has created a series of puppets for pupils to make, based on the characters. A lesson plan on character, setting and plot is available for The Snail and the Whale from Minesamalibu.

Where to find it

www.tes.co.ukdonaldson.