the SQUINK

TITLE: Oxford Reading Tree: Stage 10: TreeTops: The Squink: Squink (Oxford Reading Tree Treetops)


AUTHOR: Rita Ray


ISBN: 019916858X


BINDING: Paperback


PUBLISHER: Oxford University Press


PUBLICATION DATE: 1995-09-14


PAGES: 32

==================


about the author

my name is rita ray. i think it is a good name for a writer because people find it easy to remember.

The idea for the squink came to me in a supermarket queue. a llittle girl was playing with a knitted creature on the end of a string. i could not work out what kind of an animal it was. but that didn't matter. neither of us got bored while we waited. when i wrote the story down, i had to change it a few times before i got it right.

===============================


BLURB


A blurb is a short summary or some words of praise accompanying a creative work, usually referring to the words on the back of the book.


the squink

everyone is making things for the craft fair.

shahnaz wants to make something extra special.

will the other children laugh at her idea?


=======================================================

about the book

when shahnaz tries to knit a toy mouse for the craft fair, it comes out as something quite different and everyone wants to buy one!!!


ask your child what they think a 'squink' is???


Flick through the book, looking at illustrations. ask your child whether the setting looks like their own school. is there anything that looks familiar?


on page 11 talk about how difficult it can be to make something. ask your child if the face shahnaz has knitted looks like the picture of the mouse.

encourage your child to read the story at their own pace.

==================


read aloud


read pages 17 and 18 aloud together, taking turns to read Barry Kent or Shahnaz spoken words.


==

after reading


ask your child if they think a real-looking mouse would have been as popular at the craft fair. why do they think people wanted to buy the 'squinks'???

talk together about which parts of the story your child liked or disliked most.

together try to make up some new animal names like 'squink' by joining two words together, such as a 'rink' ( round pink animal ) or 'trellow' ( triangular yellow animal ) ...



any ideas???










..


:)