Engaging with the plot of 'The Day the Crayons Quit'
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can engage with the plot of 'The Day the Crayons Quit'.
Key learning points
- 'The Day the Crayons Quit' is a children's picture book.
- The book is compiled of letters from the crayons to their owner, Duncan, explaining why they are going to quit.
- The illustrations visually bring to life the personalities and emotions of each crayon character.
- Letters are often written when the writer has a feeling or an opinion about something.
- The crayon characters all have different reasons for writing their letter to Duncan.
Keywords
Fiction - when authors create made up stories with characters, places and adventures which did not happen in real life
Character - a person, animal, being, creature or thing in a story
Letter - a written communication sent in an envelope by post
Recipient - the person who receives the letter
Common misconception
Pupils may think that a character in a book has to be a person or animal.
Explain to pupils that objects can be personified; the illustrations visually bring to life the personalities and emotions of each crayon character.
Teacher tip
Reading the book in advance of the lesson is recommended. If reading in advance, you can skip the prediction discussion in Slides 11 and 12.
Equipment
You need a copy of the 2016 Harper Collins edition of ‘The Day the Crayons Quit', written by Drew Daywalt and illustrated by Oliver Jeffers for this lesson.
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.What is an author?
Q2.What is the role of an illustrator?
Q3.What is the definition of 'plot'?
Q4.What is a 'character'?
Q5.Is this statement true or false? 'Non-fiction texts are about imagined or made up characters and places.'
Q6.Match these forms of communication to the way in which they are sent.
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Who is the author of 'The Day the Crayons Quit'?
Q2.Who is the illustrator of 'The Day the Crayons Quit'?
Q3.Who are the main characters in 'The Day the Crayons Quit'?
Q4.Select the reasons that the crayons wanted to quit.
Q5.Why might someone write a letter?
Q6.Is this statement true or false? 'The crayons all have the same reason for writing to Duncan.'
To help you plan your 3 English lesson on: Engaging with the plot of 'The Day the Crayons Quit', download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 3 English lesson on: Engaging with the plot of 'The Day the Crayons Quit', 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 2 English lessons from the 'The Day the Crayons Quit': reading and writing persuasive letters unit, dive into the full primary English curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.