© Mauritius Institute of Education (2014)

Author

Adapted by: English Department

Mauritius Institute of Education

Illustrations by
Evan Sohun

ISBN: 978-99949-37-40-0

All rights reserved; no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any
means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without permission of the Publishers.
Preface
Effective literacy development results from the use of a combination of age-appropriate resources and effective teaching strategies. Big books have proved to
be successful in developing the literacy skills of young learners as they constitute interesting stories that appeal to children, attractive illustrations that support
the construction of meaning and large print that make them ideal material for interactive whole class activities.

A series of five fiction-based big books have thus been produced to complement the Standard II English textbook and make the learning of English more
enjoyable for our children. Each big book contains guidelines for implementation and a series of activities to develop requisite literacy skills.

The big books are meant to be used during the literacy sessions that are conducted on the completion of specific units in the textbook. A thematic link has been
established between a given unit and a big book. As such, the activities aim to extend the learning that has taken place during the English lessons.

We hope that the Standard II pupils fully engage in and enjoy the literacy sessions and that these promote their interest in the learning of English.

The Standard II English textbook writing team.

i
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Once upon a time, there was a little red hen
that lived on a farm.
She was friends with a dog, a cat
and a noisy duck.

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 One sunny day, the little red hen decided to plant some seeds.
She asked her friends: “Who will help me to plant my seeds ?”

“Not I,” barked the dog. “I am watching the farm.”

“Not I,” purred the cat. “I am hunting for mice.”

“Not I,” quacked the duck. “I am looking after my ducklings.”

“Then I will plant the seeds,” said the little red hen and she planted
her seeds all by herself.

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One cloudy day, when the seeds had grown, the little red hen asked
her friends, “Who will help me cut my wheat ?”

“Not I,” barked the dog. “I am watching the farm.”

“Not I,” purred the cat. “I am hunting for mice.”

“Not I,” quacked the duck. “I am looking after my ducklings.”

“Then I will cut the wheat,” said the little red hen and she cut
her wheat all by herself.

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One windy day, when all the wheat was cut, the little red hen asked
her friends, “Who will help me take my wheat to the mill to be ground
into flour ?”

“Not I,” barked the dog. “I am watching the farm.”

“Not I,” purred the cat. “I am hunting for mice.”

“Not I,” quacked the duck. “I am looking after my ducklings.”

“Then I will,” said the little red hen. She took her wheat to the mill
and ground the wheat into flour. Then, she carried her heavy
sack of flour back to the farm all by herself.
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 One rainy day, the little red hen was tired. She asked her friends:
“Who will help me bake my bread ?”

“Not I,” barked the dog. “I am watching the farm.”

“Not I,” purred the cat. “I am hunting for mice.”

“Not I,” quacked the duck. “I am looking after my ducklings.”

“Then I will bake the bread,” said the little red hen and she baked her
bread all by herself.

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 Soon the bread was ready.

“Will you give me some bread ?” asked the dog.

“Will you give me some bread ?” asked the cat.

“Will you give me some bread ?” asked the duck.

“No, I will not,” said the little red hen and she ate her bread
all by herself.

12
 The Little Red Hen
Duration: Approximately 30 minutes per session

Session 1 Pre reading Session 2

Starting the sessions:
l Ideally, all pupils are seated in a semi circle in front of the teacher so that the book is
visible to everyone.
l The teacher ensures that all pupils are silent and attentive before starting.
l The teacher shows the pupils the cover of the book and reads the title. Prior knowledge or
guesses can be elicited through questioning.
While reading the books:
l The teacher reads each page at a moderate pace. S/he points at the relevant part of the
illustration to help the pupils understand the vocabulary.
l The first reading is uninterrupted. The pupils develop familiarity with the story.
l Alternatively, the teacher stops from time to time and invites the pupils to predict what will
happen next.
l The teacher starts by brainstorming to help pupils recall the content. Pupils are
encouraged to talk about their personal experiences that are relevant to the topic.
l The teacher reads the book again but lingers over each page to ask factual questions,
the meaning of new words, as well as elicit the pupil’s reactions/views/ feelings. E.g:
• Who wanted to plant seeds?
• What did she ask her friends?
• What did the dog/cat/duck say to the hen?
• What was the weather like on the different days?
l The teacher re- reads story aloud inviting pupils to read along, especially lines that are
repetitive. Pupils can be invited to mime the different scenes in the story. Repeated
readings will allow pupils to retain new vocabulary and language patterns.

Session 3 Post reading

l Activity to reinforce understanding of text and vocabulary.

l Creative activity to demonstrate an understanding of the themes.

Activities:
Activity 1
a) I tell my friends what I think about the story. Activity 2
i. Who works hard in the story? I put the sentences in the correct order:
ii. Who doesn’t help the little red hen? • The little red hen ate the bread.
iii. Why don’t they help her? • The little red hen cut the wheat.
iv. Do you think that the red hen must share her bread with her friends? Why? • The little red hen baked bread.
v. Do you think that the red hen’s friends will help her next time? Why? • The little red hen planted some seeds.
• The little red hen ground the wheat.
b) I tick the lesson that I learnt from the story:
i. We must not do any work.
ii. We must help our friends.
iii. We must not have friends.
ISBN: 978 - 99949 -37 - 40 - 0