Tyger Tyger by Zaff

In this activity you will form your own impression of the Tyger based on the poem by William Blake. You will then create an original piece of art work based on The Tyger.

William Blake was not just a poet but an artist too. He used a technique known as engraving to accompany his poetry, which is similar to an etching technique used on slate or parched paper.

The picture above is a young artist’s impression of the Tyger. The vivid colors depicts a “tyger” (Blake’s old fashioned spelling) that illuminates the jungle with an orange glow as it moves through the green leaves.

Poetry Activity:

Step 1: Before you begin your drawing, study the poem further to form your impressions of the Tyger.

Here is some poetry analysis to guide you:

The Tyger is a source of energy but also a thing to be feared. The creature is described in terms of its bodily creation:’ the furnace’ of its brain, ‘the fire of thine eyes’, and its ‘dread hand’ and ‘dread feet’, which present the image of a fearsome Tyger.

The poem describes the Tyger ‘Burning Bright in the forests of the Night’; the Tyger is therefore likened to the flames of fire with its orange fur and stripes. We imagine the Tyger lighting up the forest as it moves, creating a source of energy and an illuminating presence.

The stars which ‘throw down their spears’ are personified in the poem and convey giving energy to the Tyger as it moves through the forest. The Tyger is also compared to the Lamb, a completely opposite creature in creation. It is also opposite because it is usually symbolic of Jesus’s sacrifice. The poet asks ‘what immortal hand or eye could frame thy fearful symmetry?’ which suggests that no living thing could equal the forceful creation of the Tyger.

Step 2:

What images from the poem jump out to you?
Two vivid image examples are:

1.The Tyger looking into the flame of fire
2.The Stars that throw down their spears.

Pick one line from the poem with a strong image and description of the Tyger in it and write it down.

Step 3:
Draw an outline sketch in pencil of the Tyger as it appears to you in your imagination from the description.

Step 4:
Choose a ‘style’ of artwork for your Tyger picture. Artists use many different techniques to create their work. Artwork can be classical like a water color by the famous 19th Century English painter John Turner, or more modern art piece like a 1970s Andy Warhol Pop Art.

Pick a style in which you will create your picture of the Tyger.

Step 5:
Pick a material to color your Tyger in. There are a wide variety of different art materials to choose from: Paints, water-color, oils, pastels or chalk, or marker pens or ink.

Above is a cartoon style picture of The Tyger using fine marker pens, which give a very different impression of the Tyger but still captures the spirit of Tyger in the poem.

Step 6:
Share your Tyger with a friend and see if they can spot which verse line of the poem it illustrates.

Don’t forget you can always send your pictures and or shares your ideas of the Tyger in William Blake’s poem on Storynory.com.

Bye Bye

N *

Comprehension

1) What kind of person is a Samurai?

2) What do you understand by the phrase “distilled essence of violence” ?

3) What are the ways in which a tea master is similar and different to a Samurai?

4) What did the tea master do when he met the two Samurai warriors?

5) What does the second Samurai think about the way the tea master is dressed?

Vocabulary and Grammar

1)”his sole focus”

What is another word for “sole”?

a) foot
b) spirit
c) only
d) fishy
3) strong

2)”The odds, the dangers and the enemies may be massively against him….”

The word “odds” comes from the world of

a) betting
b) war
c) cooking
d) astrology
e) sailing

3) Which is the correct sentence?

a) He did not quite know what to take of the fellow who dressed like a fellow Samurai
b) He did not quite know what to make with the fellow who dressed like a fellow Samurai
c) He did not quite know what to make of the fellow who dressed like a fellow Samurai
e) He did not quite know what to make off the fellow who dressed like a fellow Samurai
d) He did not quite know what to break off the fellow who dressed like a fellow Samurai

4)”They found themselves face X face with two Samurai warriors.”

What is the missing word?

a) with
b) by
c) to
d) in
e) on

5) “He was an impostor”

What is another word for impostor ?

a) thief
b) enemy
c) spy
d) faker
e) tea-maker

A Samurai warrior is as spiritual as a monk. He is the ruler of of his mind as much as of his body. He trains his spirit through the form of meditation known as zen. He can sit still for hours on end, gradually reducing his thoughts until his sole focus is on his breath. No base passion, fear, discomfort or excitement shall control him even for a single second. He can endure the bitterest cold or the fiercest heat. When faced with death itself, his mind is perfectly still. The odds, the dangers and the enemies may be massively against him and yet his concentration, as sharp as his sword, may cut through them all.

Yes he is a spiritual being indeed. But his spirit is the distilled essence of violence.

But such self-control is not confined to the fighters of Japan. The Master of the Japanese Tea ceremony performs his peaceful duties with just the same concentration and focus of attention, as this story from Ancient Japan shows.

Several centuries ago, a tea master worked in the service of Lord Yamanouchi. No-one else performed the way of the tea to such perfection. The timing and the grace of his every move, from the unfurling of mat, to the setting out of the cups, and the sifting of the green leaves, was beauty itself. His master was so pleased with his servant, that he bestowed upon him the rank and robes of a Samurai warrior.

When Lord Yamanouchi travelled, he always took his tea master with him, so that others could appreciate the perfection of his art. On one occasion, he went on business to the great city of Edo, which we now know as Tokyo.

When evening fell, the tea master and his friends set out to explore the pleasure district, known as the floating world. As they turned the corner of a wooden pavement, they found themselves face to face with two Samurai warriors.

The tea master bowed, and politely step into the gutter to let the fearsome ones pass. But although one warrior went by, the other remained rooted to the spot. He stroked a long black whisker that decorated his face, gnarled by the sun, and scarred by the sword. His eyes pierced through the tea maker’s heart like an arrow.

He did not quite know what to make of the fellow who dressed like a fellow Samurai, yet who would willingly step aside into a gutter. What kind of warrior was this? He looked him up and down. Where were broad shoulders and the thick neck of a man of force and muscle? Instinct told him that this was no soldier. He was an impostor who by ignorance or impudence had donned the uniform of a Samurai.

Assignments

What is more important, to be strong in mind or strong in body? In a conflict, who is more likely to win, the person with the most concentration and self-control, or the person with the most strength? What will see you through troubles and dangers, your mind or your body? Write down your thoughts or discuss them in class.

In this Wizard of Oz Activity you will write down a way to save a friend in need just like Dorothy and companions do for the Lion in The Deadly Poppy Field (See The Wizard of Oz, Chapter 9).

But first here’s a little reminder of what happens in the story:

In Chapter 8, both Dorothy and the Cowardly Lion have fallen into a deep sleep in the Deadly Poppy Fields. They might never wake up again. The Tin Woodman and the Scarecrow are able to carry Dorothy to safety, but the lion is too heavy for them. In Chapter 9, the Tin Woodman saves a field-mouse from a wild cat. It turns out that she is the Queen of the Field Mice. The Tin Woodman makes a cart on wheels for the Cowardly Lion and an army of field mice pull him to safety. In this way they save the lion.

Wiz Oz Activity: Saving a Friend

This is a writing activity where you can think up and write down your own ideas on how to save a friend in need with the help of an animal.

Just as Dorothy and her friends face a difficult task, so you must overcome a little obstacle.

Can you imagine a friend you may need to save?

Where are they and how would you save them?

Here is an example:

You are walking with a friend in the forest, it’s getting dark, and a thick mist starts appearing. You lose your friend. You hear the sound of an Owl in the trees. It is in distress and needs rescuing, so you go to it and free its trapped wing from a branch. The Owl flies over to you with a Twit TWoo Woo and in gratitude agrees to help you and your friend in the mist of the woods.

The Owl calls upon the other Owl Birds and use their Owl Eyes to see in the dark. You call the name of your friend e.g. if is Polly maybe they cry out, “POOOOOLLLLLLYYY !” The owls give you some string which you can unwind so that you can find your way back through the dark. Imagine you do this and can save your friend

So that’s one idea – you can write down a rescue plan yourself ! Perhaps you can do two or three.

Just be sure to mark these four points

Where you are and when is it?
Who is the friend you must rescue?
Why is your friend in trouble?
Which animal will help you?
How will this be done?

I hope this can help you rescue your friend in need!

Thank for listening to the Wizard of Oz on Storynory
Bye Bye

N*

Not Just a Nursery Rhyme!

We all have memories of singing nursery rhymes. Our first experiences will probably have been with our family and then with our teacher at school or nursery. I grew up in the North East of England and was lucky enough to have a grandmother who sang with us and taught us local traditional nursery rhymes. When my own children came along, I sang these nursery rhymes with them too.

It seems almost instinctive to sing and clap with a child. Adults and children have probably been participating in this sort of activity for millennia. However, singing and rhyming with a child has much broader implications than fun and amusement. When you sing and rhyme with a child they are actually gaining a whole raft of important skills without even realising it.
Rhythm and Steady Beat.

Spoken Language consists of patterns and sounds, and songs with a strong rhythm emphasis these. In turn, these songs help to tune a child’s brain into the patterns of spoken language. Favourite rhymes such as ‘Pat a cake, pat a cake baker’s man’ and ‘Rub a dub dub’ have a pronounced beat. Research by educationalists such as Phyllis Weikert have shown that the ability to keep a steady beat is an indication of how well a child will develop future reading skills. You will be able to tap, clap or drum along to many of Storynory’s nursery rhymes.

Makeshift Drums

You can easily turn buckets, plastic plates, and upturned plant pots into makeshift drums so your children can tap along with the nursery rhymes.

Rhyming

Reading and writing build on the foundations of good speech and language skills. Before a child begins to learn letter sounds or read words they need to develop a good sense of sound or phonological awareness. Sound awareness enables children to hear the elements in a word such as syllables, for example ‘el/e/phant’ and letter sounds or phonemes such as ‘c’ at the beginning of cat. The ability to hear these sounds eventually allow a child to work out that c-a-t becomes cat.

Words often come in families such as bat, cat and sat. Once children are aware of these word patterns, it makes it easier for a child to read an unfamiliar word. Joining in with nursery rhymes naturally tunes children’s brains into rhyming patterns.

Finish the Line

When your child becomes familiar with some of the nursery rhymes, you can pause the track just before the end of a line and ask your child to finish the sentence with the correct rhyming word. Once your child understands the concept of rhyming, you can encourage them to find alternative rhyming words.

Finger Action and Motor Skills

Singing nursery rhymes can help children to develop pencil control and movement. Holding a pencil and forming a letter is quite a complex process. Pencil control requires whole body movements as well as fine hand and finger control and hand-eye coordination.

Most nursery rhymes require children to move, jump up and down, swing their arms or march. Fine finger movements are needed to control the pencil and the pressure put on the paper. All of the finger actions which accompany many nursery rhymes encourage this development. Just think of the actions for Incey Wincey Spider climbing up the spout, or the mouse running up the clock. These are the motor skills that children need to practice to gain good pencil control.

Marching Rhythm

Instead of clapping or tapping along to a rhyme, ask your children to march or stamp around the room in time to the rhythm. This will involve whole body movements and encourage important motor development. You can emphasise these movements by using ribbon sticks and scarves.

Maths and Concepts

Nursery rhymes are a marvelous way for children to gain an understanding of mathematical concepts. Storynory’s nursery rhymes cover many positional concepts such as in, down, over, on and out. By singing these nursery rhymes and joining in with some of the simple actions, children will be exploring these concepts and learning positional vocabulary. Singing ‘Rub a dub dub’ and ‘Two little dickie birds’ introduces young children to early counting skills.

Make Some Puppets

Draw some of the characters and creatures from the nursery rhymes. These can be cut out, attached to drinking straws to make simple puppets. Children can use these puppets to join in with actions to the nursery rhyme and make their own.

Social Interaction

As young children grow, they become aware that there are others in the world apart from themselves. They realise that there is a need to take turns, share and interact with other children. Sharing nursery rhymes in a group give children the opportunity to take turns, share and interact and talk with other children.

Joining in with nursery rhymes is such a lovely way to share a fun activity with your child. It’s fun, it’s free and you can do this anywhere, in the car, on the way to school, even going round the supermarket.

An Acting Game

With your children, discuss who the main characters in the rhyme are. Your children can then take turns to act out the nursery rhyme.

One of my favourites

I’d like to finish by sharing a nursery rhyme my grandmother taught me. It has a strong steady beat and ideal for clapping, tapping or bouncing along to. It goes like this…

Clap hands for daddy coming down the wagon way.
He’s got a pocket full of money and a wagon load of hay.

My grandmother used to slow the beat down then speed it up again and we would clap along with her. She would substitute my name or my sisters and put all sorts of silly objects in daddy’s pocket which would set us off into fits of laughter.

So… next time you sing a nursery rhyme with your child you are helping them to take part in an amazing learning activity without even knowing it. Have fun and happy rhyming!

By Eleanor Johnson, Early Years Teacher, Creator of StoryPhones
www.storyphones.co.uk

For Storynory’s Nursery Rhymes please see:

• Nursery Rhymes 1
• Nursery Rhymes 2.

Chapter 11,  The Wonderful Emerald City of Oz

In this activity you will create and draw How the Character of the Wizard of Oz would appear to you, if you were to meet him in his Palace throne room.

But first, a little re-cap on the chapters so far:

Each of the characters has a special request for the Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Dorothy wants to return to Kansas. The Scarecrow wants some brains. The Cowardly Lion wants courage. The Tin Woodman wants a heart.

Unexpectedly Oz appears to each of the characters in a different form. He appears as a floating orange head to Dorothy, as a lovely lady to the scarecrow, as a terrible beast to the Tin Woodman, and as a ball of fire to the lion.

Oz tells each character he will grant his or her request, but first they must defeat the Wicked Witch of the West.

With these points in mind, why not try the following Wiz Oz activities?

Writing Activity : How does the great Oz appear to you?

1. Imagine there is a special something that you want. It may be something personal or to go somewhere like Dorothy. For example, perhaps you what to climb a large mountain to see a great sight, but you are a afraid of heights! Write down your request to the great Oz.
2. Now imagine you are in the Emerald city inside the palace throne room of the great Oz. How does Oz appear to you? For example he could appear to you as a mighty fountain. In fact, he could appear to you as almost anything. Think of an idea and describe how he appears to you.
3. Next imagine like Dorothy and the companions you will will meet Oz in the palace throne room to tell him your request, he is going to demand that you tell him why you want him to fulfill your request. . Think of a very good reason to tell Oz, for he will be tough with you! Write your reason down on your piece paper.
4. Finally imagine that Oz has said he will grant you your request but he is demanding something of you in return, for example you must defeat the briar bushes and fire flies that swarm around the bottom of the mountain by the stream. Think of your own idea about what he might demand from you and write it down.

Making Activity: Wizard of Oz Orange Head

Materials: an orange, black & red pens, matchsticks and patterned shawl.

1. To make the base of your Wiz Oz orange head, take a real Orange for the head of Oz and draw little black dots on it with a pen for two black eyes, a nose and a mouth, as Oz appears to Dorothy.
2. Take your patterned shawl and wrap it around the sides or the orange to make it into the lady that appears to the Scarecrow.
3. Use the small sticks and squeeze them into the sides of the Oz head to make the fierce beast that the great The Tin Woodman meets.
4. With the red pen draw fire flames onto white paper and glue it on to the base of the orange to turn your Oz head into the Great Ball of Fire as it appears to the the Lion.

Making  your own Wizard of Oz

Finally, if you wish to make your own Wizard of Oz, you can do this too.

You will still need your Wiz Oz orange. Here is one idea:

To make a Wizard of Oz Fountain Head, cut out some blue paper in the shape of waves of water and place your Wizard of Oz Orange head on top of it – now Oz is sitting on top of a mighty fountain.

Look back at the ideas you wrote down and create the Wizard of Oz in your own form.

Take your piece of paper and read your requests out loud. If you are brave enough you can pretend to respond with a terrible Oz voice, of how Oz might sound to you!

I hope you have fun and these Wiz Oz activities help bring The Wizard of Oz alive for you.

Bye Bye

N*

In this Wizard of Oz activity we will be learning how to find courage just like the cowardly Lion, when he meets little Dorothy and the companions in Chapter 6, The Cowardly Lion and decides to venture with them along the yellow brick road.

Firstly lets recap on the character of the Cowardly Lion and his story so far.

Dorothy and her travelling companions meet the Cowardly lion, when he comes roaring from the forest chasing little Toto the dog, and they are surprised to find he is timid. He explains that all the animals in the forest do not fear him as they should because he has lost his courage, Dorothy suggests he should join them along the Yellow Brick Road to the Emerald City to meet the great Oz who may grant him the courage he needs.

Imagine that there is something you’ve always wanted to do and need to gather up courage for it – for example you want to climb a mountain

Write down three things that you can think of that may help you find courage to do what you want.

For instance if you want courage to climb a mountain:

1. Find a friend or relative who is experienced in mountain walking and ask them to go with you.
2. Practice reading a map with a compass.
3. Draw your mountain and mark out spots with a red cross to break the journey up like mini goal posts, that you will reach along the way.

So plan it well, take a deep breath before you begin, and wear good shoes! The important thing is to think of steps you can take on the way to solving your problem.

In Chapter 7, the Lion is still a little afraid to act when they come across the fierce Kalidahs, but he does carry the friends to safety on his back. In chapter 8, when the scarecrow gets stuck on the pole in the river, the Lion bravely jumps into the river and swims to push the raft to the land. So the Lion is perhaps braver than he realises. Maybe you are too !

Wiz Oz Activity

Maybe there is something you think you are not very good at like swimming or making new friends.

Write down three reasons why this could be:

For example, you need to find a nice pool near by you and find the opening times!

Write down three things you will do to help you get your wish.

For example,  you will pick a new swimming costume and pack your bag the night before.

Don’t wait for the Wonderful Wizard of Oz to solve your problems, you can solve them yourself !

Bye Bye

N *

Dorothy & The Lion

Background

The stories that the Tin Woodman, the Scarecrow and The Cowardly Lion share with Little Dorothy pass the time as they walk along the Yellow Brick Brick Road.

• The Tin Woodman’s story is long and heartfelt: he was mislead by the Wicked Witch of the East who cut off his limbs.
• The Scarecrow tells how he was stranded in the cornfields by a farmer who stuck hin on a pole to scare away the crows.

Each character has a story to share; they have been lonely it seems in the cornfields and forests before Dorothy came across them. Fortunately, Dorothy is a good listener.

Activity

Get a piece of paper and a pencil:

1. Imagine a situation which calls for you to act a bit differently from usual – for instance there is a big storm and all the lights go out in the house.
2. Write down what you have to do help the situation e.g. find a candle or a small torch.
3. Write down who you need to help you find a way to solve your problem.
4. Imagine you had time to tell that person your past and why it is you live where you do e.g. family were fisherman and they sailed boats and that is why you live near water.
5. Write down your story in the first person, which means you write is as if you are telling the story about yourself – “I did this, I said that”.

I hope you can write a piece of your own Oz Style Storytelling.

Thanks for listening
Bye Bye
N *

Points Along Yellow Brick Road

Here are some reminders to help you make your illustrated map.

The road takes Dorothy along a changing landscape from cornfields to forests. As the Witch of the North warns her, “The road is sometimes pleasant and sometimes dark and terrible.”

The Yellow Brick Road is often hard to find. The scarecrow helps Dorothy to find it and takes her from the land of the Munchkins.

From the farmers fields, they come to the woods covered in thick branches and trees. The leaves and dried branches cover the bricks of the yellow brick road.

The path leads them to the forest, where they find the Tin Woodman in his cottage.

They next meet the Cowardly Lion, who is hiding in the forest: Afraid of his own shadow, he bounds along to the path in front of them.

At the beginning of Chapter Seven, the characters must camp out under the stars in the forest.

The journey along the Yellow Brick Road becomes more challenging and scary, as the dark frost become thick and gloomy and they encounter the fierce Kalidahs.

They come across a wide the ditch that they must jump across on the back of the Lion.

As the woods become thinner they see the broad river with the Yellow Brick Road on the other side. The Tin Wood Man, again using his strengths builds a raft, they then board and which sweeps the scarecrows away and he gets stuck on a pole.

Draw your Own Yellow Brick Road Map

How does this journey look like to you ?

Use our pointers to help you: Draw the yellow brick road from the beginning to the end and mark the changing landscape and the characters that Dorothy meets along the way. Include the stopping points, and the elements of nature that steer them off course and away from the yellow brick road. listen and read back over the chapters to help you.

Dear Wiz OZ Listeners,

This is a Wiz Oz making activity that involves you making the  main characters in the story of The Wizard of Oz.  You can also use the models for the future Wizard of Oz Activities on Storynory.com that are based on the chapters. You can can make the characters out some simple materials you find around the home or from a garden or stationary shop.

The Scarecrow out of some old string or straw fastened together, using some felt for his jacket and hat

The Tin Woodman out of cardboard as a base for his body and wrapped in foil. Make the same for the shape of his his axe and his oil can.

The Lion out of a knitted ball,  with felt for a main and glue on beads for eyes.

Dorothy from a wooden peg and attach some blue & white chequered material for her dress, silver foil for her shoes

Her little Dog Totto out of an old sweet wrapper with the ends twisted to make his tail

I hope you have fun

Bye Bye
N*