Embarked

A heartwarming animation about a tree house and the kids who love it.

Watch this video with your children, and then try some of our teaching and activity ideas below.

Teaching Ideas and Resources:

English

• The tree house in the film is a good example of anthropomorphism. Discuss the ways in which the film gives the tree house human characteristics. Collect vocabulary to describe it.
• The title of the film is a play on words. Why do you think it was chosen? Can you think of an alternative title for the film?
• Make a comparison chart comparing the two settings.
• Write some reasons why the family has to move.
• The photos at the beginning of the film tell the story of how Jimmy built the tree house. Write a description of how he built it.
• Stop the film at various points  (for example, 0:33, 2:40, 3:28). How is Jimmy feeling? Use a line graph to show how emotions change throughout the film.
• Why does Jimmy leave the hat behind? Why does the house follow him with the hat? Discuss as a class and write some responses.
• Write a news report about the house walking down the street.
• Write a set of instructions showing how to build a tree house.
• Look at the language used in estate agent’s adverts and write an advert for the house and tree house.
• Write the story from the point of view of the girl.
• Watch Home Sweet Home and look for similarities and differences.

Science

• Why is wood good for building? What are the drawbacks? Make a list of the advantages and disadvantages and compare it to other building materials such as brick.

Computing

• Use Pivot animator or a similar program to make a simple animation of a moving house.
• Design a webpage for the film.

Design Technology

• Design a tree house. Look at these for inspiration!

Art

• Look at the artist’s ideas for the film. Create your own character in the same way. Build up an idea from a sketch to a finished painting and display it side by side.
• Create a storyboard for the film.

Music

• Explore wooden instruments. Compare the sounds of different ones. e.g. xylophone, claves etc. Play a listening game. The children look away, an instrument is played. Which one is it?
• Compose something only using wooden instruments. How does it sound? If you could add one non-wooden sound to the piece, what would you choose?

Geography

• Investigate the differences between rural and urban areas. Collect vocabulary and write some definitions.

PSHE

• What makes a place special? Which places are special to you?
• Have you ever moved house? How did it make you feel?