Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Flies Again

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When the Tooting family find a vast abandoned engine and fit it to their old camper van, they have no idea of the adventure that lies ahead. The engine used to belong to an extraordinary magical flying car – and it wants to get back on the road again- fast! The Tootings can tug the steering wheel and pull the handbrake as hard as they like, but their camper van now has a mind of her own. It’s not long before they’re hurtling along on a turbocharged chase as Chitty tracks down her long-lost bodywork. But there are sinister forces at work too. When it comes to a car as special as Chitty everybody wants a piece of her…

Teaching Ideas and Resources:

English

Dad likes announcing his word of the day. Can you find a new word each day that you have never seen before? Can you find out what it means? Could you use a dictionary to help with this?
Write a story which explains what happened to the camper van before the Tooting family owned it.
Retell the story from the point of view of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
Make a list of dad’s ‘Word of the Day’s. What do they all mean? Why did he choose them? Which ones are your favourite?
When Dad first starts the camper van, it makes a ‘Bukka Bukka Chikka Chikka’ noise. Can you think of other words that are used to describe sounds?
Create a persuasive advert to encourage somebody to buy Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (or another amazing vehicle).
Write a newspaper article which reports on a sighting of a flying vehicle.
Role-play an interview between the ‘Car Stupide’ reporter and the Tooting Family.
If you could travel anywhere in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, where would you go? Why?
Read through Chapter 8 and try to find different words that show how the cars drove. Can you make a list of them?
Use the speech bubbles in Chapter 9 to write a play script based on the conversation between Nanny and Tiny Jack.
Write a recipe to teach people how to make pancakes.
Can you write some entries from the car’s logbook?
Write a sequel to the story based on the ending of this book.
Watch the original movie and write your own review of it.
Read the original book. How is it similar / different to this one?
Watch this video, in which the author shares his thoughts about the story:

Maths

The Samba Bus normally has a 1.5 litre engine but the new engine has a capacity of 23 litres. Can you measure 1.5l and 23l of water. What do they look like?

Science

Draw a picture of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang driving along the road. What forces are acting upon it? How would this change when the vehicle is flying?
Investigate other machines that fly. What features do they need to help them to fly?
Lucy tells her family that there are no sunsets in the desert. Can you explain why this is?

Computing

Could you make an animation of a flying vehicle?

Design Technology

At the start of the story, Dad makes lots of home-improvements. Draw a picture of a house and add your own home improvements (e.g. automatic doors, escalators).
Design a new flying vehicle to help you travel around the world quickly.
Design your ideal car. What different features would it have? Can you draw a labelled diagram of it, like the one in Chapter 8?
Design a luxurious camper van which your family could use to go on amazing holidays together.
Find out how cars work. What different parts to they need? How are they made? What makes them move? How are they operated? How are they built?
Find all of the words that describe the parts of a car (e.g. chassis, carburettor, bumpers, gauges, ignition). Can you work out where these parts are on a car? Could you label a diagram to show where they are?
Look at the exploded view of the camper van in Chapter 2. Can you make your own exploded view or a vehicle or other object?
Imagine that you were starting a brand new car company. Can you design the logo / insignia? Read Chapter 7 for some examples.
Use construction materials to make a model of the Eiffel Tower with Chitty Chitty Bang Bang sitting at the top.
Plan and create a new game for the Chateau Bateau Toy Box.
Could you build your own Lego helicopter like Tiny Jack?

Art

Look at photographs of different cars and draw your own from different viewpoints (front / side / rear / interior).
Lucy hates the new wallpaper that Dad uses to decorate her room. Can you design some new wallpaper that she might like?
Can you find out about the artwork mentioned in Chapter 5?

Music

Sing along with the song from the original film.

Geography

Use a map to find the places mentioned in the story (Paris, Cairo, Dover, Madagascar etc.). Show the Tooting family’s route between these places.
Look at a map of Paris and find the locations that the family visit.
In Chapter 1, the family talk about lost cities like El Dorado, Camelot, Troy, Xanadu and Atlantis. Can you find out anything about these places?
Draw a plan of Chateau Bateau, adding the features mentioned in the story.

History

Dad wants his old historical map at the start of the story but the family complain that it is out-of-date. Why do maps go out-of-date? Can you look at some historical maps and compare them to modern ones?
Find out about vehicles from the past and how they have changed. What features do modern cars have that weren’t available 50 years ago? What might cars of the future be like?
The Domesday Book is mentioned in Chapter 3. What is this?
The new engine has a label with the name ‘Zborowski’ on it. Can you find out about Count Louis Zborowski. Could you write his biography?

Languages

There are a number of different languages spoken by people in the story (e.g. French / Arabic / Malagasy). Can you find out how to say some basic phrases in these languages?

PSHE

Although Dad was sacked at the beginning of the story, he sees this as ‘Excellent Big News’. Why?
Dad believes that being sacked is an ‘opportunity’. What does this mean? What opportunities have you had in your life so far?