Character, setting and plot in 'The Planet in a Pickle Jar'
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can explore the story through discussing the characters, setting and plot.
Key learning points
- ‘The Planet in a Pickle Jar’ is told through narrative writing and illustrations and it includes magical elements.
- The grandchildren are characters and the narrators of the story which means it is told from their perspective.
- At the beginning, the illustrations show a different story to the one being told by the narrators.
- The story contains multiple settings and it moves quickly between them.
- The plot follows the grandchildren as they uncover their grandma’s desire to protect the world’s wonders.
Keywords
Character - a person or an animal in a story
Setting - where the story takes place
Plot - what happens in the story
Perspective - a character's point of view
Common misconception
Children may not understand important vocabulary within the story, e.g. "preserve" or why pickling items in a jar is a way to protect them.
Offering a simple explanation of the word "preserve" will support the children's understanding. Vocabulary and the meaning behind word choices will be explored in greater detail in the next lesson in the unit.
Teacher tip
Begin the lesson by reading the blurb and showing the children the illustration on the blurb. Ask them to predict which animals they will encounter in the story based on the clues they can see and why they think they are in the grandma's house.
Equipment
You will need a copy of the 2023 Flying Eye Books edition of ‘The Planet in a Pickle Jar’ written and illustrated by Martin Stanev for this lesson.
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.True or false? I can find out everything I need to know in a story through the words that are written.
Q2.Who is the author of 'The Planet in a Pickle Jar'?
Q3.What is a narrator?
Q4.What is a setting in a story?
Q5.True or false? A story always only has one setting.
Q6.What is a plot in a story?
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Who are the main characters in the story?
Q2.Which settings do we see explored through the illustrations within the story?
Q3.True or false? The illustrations show the same story as the narrative writing in the book.
Q4.How did the grandma captivate her grandchildren?
Q5.True or false? The grandma only protects the world's natural wonders in her jars.
Q6.How did the grandchildren's perspective of their Grandma change throughout the story?
To help you plan your 2 English lesson on: Character, setting and plot in 'The Planet in a Pickle Jar', download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 2 English lesson on: Character, setting and plot in 'The Planet in a Pickle Jar', download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 1 English lessons from the 'The Planet in a Pickle Jar': book club unit, dive into the full primary English curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.