Somebody Swallowed Stanley

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Everybody has a taste for Stanley – and the other ocean creatures just keep mistaking him for a delicious treat – but this is no ordinary jellyfish.

Most jellyfish have dangly-gangly tentacles, but Stanley has two handles…Other jellyfish have a magical glow, but Stanley has stripes… Because Stanley (spoiler alert) is a plastic bag!

Teaching Ideas and Resources:

English

• The title of the book features alliteration. Can you find other stories with alliterative titles? Could you make up some story titles that include it?
• Write a prequel to the story. Where did Stanley come from?
• Could you add a new part to the story in which a new animal swallows Stanley?
• Think of some speech bubbles for Stanley and the other characters in the story.
• Retell the story from Stanley’s point of view. Could you write his diary?
• Rewrite the story (or a part of it) in the form of a playscript. What would Stanley and the animals say?
• There are a number of similes in the story (e.g. as rough as barnacles, as vast as a cave). Can you think of any others?
• Write a persuasive letter to a local shop or supermarket to encourage them to sell more products with packaging that can be recycled.
• At the end of the story, Stanley is turned into a kite. Make a list of the different ways you could reuse an old plastic bag
• Could you write your own story to teach other children about a specific environmental issue?
• This story is written by Sarah Roberts, who is an animal behaviourist and wildlife expert. Think of some questions that you would like to ask her. This video gives more information about Sarah and her work:

Maths

• Collect and sort the different types of waste from your classroom in a day or a week. Use this data to create graphs and charts. Can you use this information to think of ways to reduce your waste in the future?

Science

• Find out about jellyfish and write a report to teach others about them.
• Investigate the properties of plastic. Why is it used to make so many different products?
• How does plastic affect turtles in the ocean? Find out in this video:

Computing

• Make a multimedia presentation about jellyfish.
• Make an animation of a jellyfish moving through the water.
• Use publishing software to teach people why it is important to reuse plastic bags instead of buying new ones every time we go to the shops.

Design Technology

• Reuse old plastic bags to make a model of something with an environmental theme.

Art

• Look at photos and videos of jellyfish and make some illustrations or paintings of them. Combine the pictures made by everyone in your class to make a huge underwater display.
• Make a comic strip that retells this story.

Geography

• Learn about the importance of reducing, reusing and recycling waste. How can we encourage people to do more of this?
• What happens to our waste when it is thrown away? Can you find out?
• Learn about the different materials that can be recycled.
• Make a recycling diary for your home to record the different types (and amounts) of waste that you recycle in a week.

PSHE

• Plan a fundraising event for an environmental charity. Could your class sponsor a turtle or another animal?