Prince Charmless

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Since the day he was born, nothing was good enough for Prince Charmless. From the moment he woke until the time he went to bed, he complained. One day all the royal servants decided they had had enough of his complaining and packed their bags. The pampered prince was left to fend for himself, with some unexpected results…

Teaching Ideas and Resources:

English

• Write a sequel to the story about ‘Princess Charmless’.
• Write a set of instructions to help Prince Charmless become a good prince.
• Write a story about what you would do if you were a prince / princess.
• Write a recipe for ‘toasted sailors’.
• Think of other words with a -less suffix. How does adding this suffix change the word (e.g. charm —> charmless, hope —> hopeless, power —> powerless).
• Write a funny play to entertain Prince Charmless.
• Find synonyms for ‘said’ that are used throughout the book, e.g. scolded, commanded. Can you think of any more?
• Retell the story from Prince Charmless’ point of view. Why is he so unhappy about things at the start of the story?
• Write a description of Prince Charmless at the start of the story. Write a description of him at the end. How do your descriptions compare?

Maths

• Prince Charmless wants to get up in the night, not the morning. Plan a new daily timetable that he might enjoy.

Science

• Can you explain to Prince Charming how rainbows are formed? Why are they bent… and not straight?

Design Technology

• Design a build a model of a big, gold palace that Prince Charmless would like to live in.
• Design a new ‘emerald crown’ or a ‘golden carriage’ for Prince Charmless.
• Plan a new game for Prince Charmless to play by himself at the end of the story.

Art

• Can you paint your own picture of a rainbow, like Prince Charming tries to do at the end of the book?

History

• Can you find out about famous princes throughout History?

PSHE

• Prince Charmless doesn’t behave very well. How might this make his family (and his servants) feel? How should he behave? What could his family do to help him?
• Does this story have a moral? What did Prince Charmless learn?