Book Review and Preschool activity ideas for planned, freeflow learning ..
Possum Magic written by Mem Fox and Julie Vivas was an incredible find for us !
My Dd (15) wasn't quite sure how food could bring a tale of magic spells to life and was somewhat stumped by the concept until we re-read it with a touch of 'let go of the sense & sensibility !!
The book is about 2 Possums - Grandma Poss and Hush.
Grandma's amazing skill is that she can make bush magic - turning Kookaburras pink, Wombats blue and more !!
The biggest magic though, was that she turned Hush invisible.
Safe from snakes Hush discovers she can do some pretty cool things without anyone knowing where she is - Sliding down the backs of Kangaroos, having her tail squashed by a koala!
Then one morning whilst watching Grandma brushing her teeth in the reflection of the water, Hush decided she'd like to be able see what she looked like again. Grandma Poss begins a search, through piles of magic books looking for a way to reverse the invisibility magic .. all to no avail, both she and Hush are very disappointed .. although Hush says it's ok.
The next morning just before breakfast, Grandma Poss remembers that the solution has something to do with food - not Possum food but human food .. so she and Hush set off across the Country to visit cities and states in search of a food, or combination of foods that would make Hush visible again !!
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Wonderful book, illustrations and way to explore Australia !!
I've only just found
Mem Fox's own website so will be back off there for a longer look around.
and a very nice bio page for Illustrator
Julie Vivas - from Walkerbooks.co.uk
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Possum Magic and an adventure with Australian food, animals and magic.
What the book details:
The Native animals featured in Possum Magic are:
Possum, Wombat, Kookaburras, Dingo, Emu, Koala, Kangaroo, An
echidna (not mentioned in the story but illustrated), Snake.
Indigenous Foods - Anzac biscuits, Mornay & minties, Pumpkin scones, Vegemite, Pavlova, Lamingtons.
Australian Cities / States
Adelaide, Melbourne, Brisbane, Darwin, Hobart, Perth, Tasmania.
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COOKERY
Pumpkin scones - add one mug full of cooked mashed pumpkin to one of these great Scone recipe suggestions -
Easy cook Scone
Anzac Biscuits googled - Biscuits contain Coconut so please check for nut allergies beforehand.
Vegemite / Marmite sandwiches.
MAGIC play ..
s and sparkles - Star written spells !
Have a table and sprinkle all over with glitter & sequins. Use a Star template to draw around and allow the Children to cut out their own yellow cards. Include a pot full of pencils and ask the children:
What would they like to do if they were invisible - that no one can see them ? write down their story (in brief if necessary) onto the card.
Watercolour poster paints - big sheets of paper on painting easels or tables and stick glue for adding sequin stars or sparkly stickers.
Seasons - link this book title to seasonal planning with these suggested keywords and themes:
Autumn: Foods - as the weather turns colder and foods become harder to grow locally, in gardens & allotments. Look at how we and animals can prepare and store foods for eating during the winter. Harvest time, Hibernation
Winter: Opposites - In Australia whilst we experience the cold of Winter, Australian's have the heat of Summer.
Spring: Growing, growth, appearance. As Gramdma Poss helps return Hush from being invisible, the Spring helps warms the ground for plants and seeds to begin growing again.
Summer: Colours - brights, pastels, primaries,
secondaries and mixing.
Enjoy and have fun
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