The Firework Maker's Daughter - Chapter 1 - Double Lesson!

This engaging and comprehensive reading lesson develops children’s understanding of Chapter 1 of Philip Pullman’s The Firework-Maker’s Daughter, whilst building their vocabulary and comprehension skills.

Through an illustrated slideshow and accompanying worksheet, children explore Lila’s ambitions, her father’s expectations and the characters of Hamlet and Chulak. Activities encourage children to retrieve key information, explain their ideas using evidence, infer characters’ feelings and motives, and make reasoned predictions.

The lesson includes:
-Vocabulary activities to clarify unfamiliar language;
-Two sets of retrieval questions with answers;
-Discussion and inference tasks exploring Hamlet’s unhappiness and Chulak’s persuasive questioning;
-A structured comparison worksheet examining Lila and Lalchand’s different hopes for her future;
-Model responses, sentence starters and an additional challenge;
-A prediction task and a final learning review.

Answers, suggested responses and teaching ideas are provided in the slideshow notes and on the second page of the worksheet. There are easily enough resources and activities here to separate this content into two lessons.

Ideal for whole-class or guided reading in Years 3 and 4, with opportunities for paired discussion and independent written responses. Children will need access to Chapter 1 of the novel.