TEACH READING & WRITING
19
10
VirginiaWolf
BYKYOMACLEARAND ISABELLE
ARSENAULT (Kids Can Press)
Key Stage2
What’s the story
One daymy sister woke up
feelingwolfish…” Virginia is in a
badmood and nothing can shake
her out of it. Nothing, that is, until
her sister asks her where she’d
rather be. “Bloomsberry,” says
Virginia. “Aplacewith...
beautiful flowers and excellent
trees…and absolutely no
doldrums.” SoVanessa sets out
to paint Bloomsberry on the
bedroomwall.
IsabelleArsenault illustrates
graphic novels aswell as
picturebooks, and their
influence can be seen
throughout VirginiaWolf.
Deep thinking
Themes include sadness
and depression, anger,
empathy, the power of creativity,
caring, communication, and
emotional literacy.
Try this...
●
Whichmoments do the
pictures illustrate?What do
they showus that we can’t get
fromthe text, and howdo they
tell us what to think and feel?
Look at the ‘volume’ at which
Virginia speaks, for example,
or the use of silhouettes. Try
illustrating a specific emotion
using an idea or technique seen
in this book.
●
Put on your (imaginary) wolf
suits to explore thewolfish
behaviour that comes with
sadness, anger and fear. Talk
about how it feels to bewolfish.
Whatmakes youmiserable?
Make a list of words to describe
sadness and ‘wolfishness’ and
use towrite a poem.
●
Why does being creative
makeVirginia feel better?What
else can people do to feel better,
and how canwe support them?
“Bring the outside inside” by
creating a giant Bloomsberry
mural where it will cheer
people up.
●
Followupwith The Red
Tree by Shaun Tan orMichael
Rosen’s SadBook (illustrated by
Quentin Blake).
“Look at the
‘volume’ at which
Virginia speaks,
for example,
or the use of
silhouettes. Try
illustrating a
specific emotion
using an idea or
technique seen in
this book”
Key Stage2
In association with
Material from Virginia Wolf by Kyo Maclear and illustrated by Isabelle Arsenault.
Used with permission by Kids Can Press.
