Where The Wild Things Are

Max dons his wolf suit in pursuit of some mischief and gets sent to bed without supper. Fortuitously, a forest grows in his room, allowing his wild rampage to continue unimpaired.

Book Author: Maurice Sendak

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Teaching Ideas and Resources:

English

• Before reading the book, look at the cover and write a story about what might happen.
• Write a story about the kinds of 'mischief' that Max makes.
• Look at the use of connectives and punctuation within the story.
• The author uses 'terrible' repeatedly to describe the wild things. Why did he use the same word so many times? Can you think of synonyms for 'terrible'?
• Write captions for each of the illustrations in the book.
• Listen to this audio version of the story. Could you record your own reading?

• If you were the king of the wild things, how would you feel? Can you write a diary from the point of view of the 'King of the Wild Things'?
• Write a sequel where Max returns to see the wild things. What might happen?
• Watch this video with the author / illustrator, Maurice Sendak. If you could interview him, what questions would you ask?

• Watch the film version of the story. How does it compare with the book?

Maths

• Find the different time periods mentioned in the book. Can you convert between different lengths of time?

Science

• Write a fact sheet about one of the wild things. What is its habitat? How is it adapted to live there? What does it eat? Does it have any special features / abilities??(see Resources below)

Computing

• Use a painting program to create a picture of a Wild Thing.
• Make a wild thing using the Switch Zoo site.
• Make a wild thing using the Build Your Wild Self site.
• Make a stop-motion animation showing Max and some wild things having an adventure. Watch this example for inspiration:

Design Technology

• Make a model of the boat that Max uses to sail to where the wild things live.

Art

• Design your own 'wild things' that live in different habitats.
• Look at the illustration of the coloured leaves on the inside cover. Could you get different colours of leaves and arrange them to make a picture? Could you cut out and paint leaf shapes and arrange these?
• Imagine that a forest (or other type of landscape) 'grew' in your bedroom / kitchen / classroom. Draw a picture showing what this might look like.
• Look at how Maurice Sendak used shading within the illustrations. Try creating different shades of one colour. Can you use these shading techniques in your own pictures?
• Can you make a flip-book animation based on a scene in the book. Look at this video showing a test animation by Disney which is based on the book:

Music

• Compose a piece of music to accompany the 'wild rumpus'.

Geography

• Draw a map showing Max's bedroom, the ocean that he sails over and the place where the 'wild things' live.

PSHE

• Max makes 'mischief'. What does this mean?
• Look at the characters' expressions in the illustrations and discuss how they are feeling at each point in the story.
• Max gets sent to bed when he makes mischief. Discuss what consequences are and how they result from our actions.