Reading 'The Twisted Tree': exploring the opening

English

In 'The Twisted Tree', pupils explore Gothic imagery in a contemporary text. In 'Dystopian Settings', pupils use their own dark imagery to write their own descriptive pieces.

In 'Sherlock Holmes: Short Stories', pupils begin to analyse the choices of an author. in 'The Twisted Tree', pupils develop their analytical writing skills. 

In this unit, pupils read, explore and respond to the modern fairytale novel 'The Twisted Tree'. They start by reading the novel before practising writing analytically about the novel's key characters and themes. They finally respond creatively to the novel by writing an article and short script.

'The Twisted Tree': fiction reading

Subjects which particular individuals may be sensitive to, eg, adoption, migration, bereavement or death, divorce, poverty, deprivation.

Depiction or discussion of sensitive content

Depiction or discussion of distress or humiliation e.g. bullying.

Depiction or discussion of peer pressure or bullying

Depiction or discussion of serious mental health issues including eating disorders, self-harm, suicide or attempted suicide, or the aftermath of such an event.

Depiction or discussion of mental health issues

What is the name of the main character in 'The Twisted Tree'?

In Chapter 1 of 'The Twisted Tree', Martha is boarding a plane. Where is she going?

Exploring the blurb, front cover and dedication of a book can give you clues about the text. This reading skill is called ...

'The Twisted Tree' has been described as a thriller, a mystery and horror. This refers to the {{}} of the text.

'The Twisted Tree' is written from Martha's perspective using the pronoun "I". This is an example of ...

Which of these would you **not** expect to find on a novel's front cover?

recall historical data on a particular event

make an educated guess based on available evidence

A summary of the book's plot and main themes. 

a work of non-fiction that tells a story about life and the world

a narrative work of fiction that tells a story 

a literary work written for the theatre that uses dialogue

'The Twisted Tree' is a novel. What is a novel?

the writer's thoughts and feelings towards the reader

what the writer aimed to do when they wrote the text

the career ambitions a writer has - what they intend to do next 

What do we mean by 'the writer's intentions'?

Content guidance

Depiction or discussion of sensitive content

Depiction or discussion of peer pressure or bullying

Depiction or discussion of mental health issues

Adult supervision required

Starter Quiz