Billy the Kid. Activity pack. Billy the Kid by Michael Morpurgo

Transcription

1 We are learning to make predictions based on clues. Looking at the title, what do you think the story will be about? Fill in the diagram below with your ideas. Billy the Kid What do you think the main events in the story might be? Look at the ideas you have put on your diagram and think about the title to help you then complete the sentence below. I think the main events in the story will be After reading the opening of the story, what are your first impressions of the narrator? Jot down words or phrases that you would use to describe him in the space below Page 1 of 8

2 Use the text to find three pieces of literal information about Billy s dad and use them to fill in the table below. What I know about Billy s father Page number The quotation which tells me this Use clues from the story to understand how a character may be feeling. Underline the evidence which suggests Billy is happy when he is signed for Chelsea. Twelve and sixpence a week and all the football I wanted to play. I d be cleaning the players boots, keeping the ground spick and span, but there d be a place in the Chelsea side in a few years time. What did we think? I could have hugged him. The very next day I kicked my first football at Chelsea Football Club, and cleaned my first pair of boots too. I was like the cat that had got the cream. I couldn t believe my luck. None of my chums had found work there wasn t much about, not in those days and I was here, being paid for what I loved doing best Page 2 of 8

3 Write a report of the Chelsea/Sunderland match for the sports page of a newspaper. The tasks below will help you plan your report. Before you begin, write down four facts and four opinions about the game. Facts Opinions You need to make your report vivid and exciting to read. One way to do this is by carefully choosing the words you use to describe the action. Verbs are words that describe an action e.g. jump. Can you think of three more verbs that could be useful in your report? Jump is quite a boring verb; leap is a bit more exciting. Look over the three verbs you chose and see if you can think of more exciting alternatives. Adjectives can be used to add interest to nouns. A noun is a name of a person, place or thing e.g. Stamford Bridge, Didier Drogba. Think of adjectives to describe a player a football ground a referee Page 3 of 8

4 In the box below write down three or four questions you would like to ask Billy after he learns that Joe has been killed: Fill in the thought bubble to show how Billy feels about Joe being killed and why he has decided to join up. I feel so terrible that Joe died before we made up Page 4 of 8

5 Find and use resources in the library that will help you understand Joe and Billy s experiences in the war. You might need to ask the librarian to help you. 1. All the books in a library are given a reference number. If you wanted to find books about World War Two, what number would you need to look for? 2. Look in an atlas and find Dunkirk in the index (spelt Dunkerque). Put your finger on it. This is where Joe was killed in the war. Which country is it in? 3. Look in an atlas and find North Africa using the contents page. Put your finger on it. This is where Billy is sent to work in field hospitals. Name two countries in North Africa. 4. Find books on the Second World War in the reference section of the library. See if you can find a picture of a Bren gun. Sketch it out below. This is what Billy was trained to use. 5. Find a picture of the uniforms worn by British soldiers. Name two pieces of their uniform Page 5 of 8

6 What do we find out about Billy s emotions at different points in the story? Fill in the table below by stepping into his shoes and thinking about how he is feeling. Moments Billy s feelings Lines which tell me that Visiting home on leave before leaving for North Africa Being on a ship for the first time Playing football on deck Landing in Tobruk Page 6 of 8

7 Step into Billy s shoes and finish writing his letter home. 6th February Dear Mum, Ossie and Emmy, It was lovely to see you all before I left. It made me feel very... When we were first on board the troop ship I felt... It really cheered me up when... Today we landed in Tobruk. When we got here it was... All I could see was... We could hear the noise of Page 7 of 8

8 I had to work hard today and use my new skills such as... It was hard but it made me feel good because... I miss you and think of you each day. Say hi to the boys at the club I miss my football too! All my love, Billy Page 8 of 8