Critical Thinking
Age 2 to 10 Years
The Gruffalo
by Julia Donaldson & Axel Scheffler
A tiny mouse invents an imaginary animal, The Gruffalo, to scare other animals away from eating him. The mouse gets a big fright when he comes face-to-face with a real-life Gruffalo but he thinks quickly and develops a clever plan to keep himself safe! Find out how he does it…
Critical Thinking
Age 2 - 10 Years
Step 1
You will need a pencil, crayons, a piece of paper, a marker and an eraser.
Step 2
Draw your imaginary creature in a way that you would like it to look. Make sure that it does not look the same as any existing creature that you know.
Step 3
Where does your creature live? Add where the creature lives to your drawing, for example, trees, a hole, a house etc.
Step 4
What does your creature eat? Draw and show what your creature eats.
Step 5
Name your creature. Write down the name of your creature at the top of the page.
Step 6
Use different colours to show differences in the body of your creature compared to The Gruffalo. Present your creature.
Step 1
Distribute a paper plate, a marker, different coloured paints, a paint brush, a pair of scissors and a piece of string.
Step 2
On your paper plate, use a marker to draw a snake from tail to head.
Step 3
Use your favourite colour to paint your snake. Use different colours to decorate your snake. Leave it to dry.
Step 4
Use your drawn lines on the paper plate to cut out your snake from the tail to the head and make sure not to cut off the head.
Step 5
Carefully make a hole at the top of the snake in order to attach the piece of string. Hang up your snake mobile.
Step 1
Distribute crayons or paint, a copy of the blank Gruffalo mask, glue, a pair of scissors and paper plates or cardboard.
Step 2
Decorate your Gruffalo mask the same as it appears in the book.
Step 3
Paste your Gruffalo mask onto your paper plate or cardboard.
Step 4
Use the dotted lines to cut out your mask.
Step 5
Make holes to attach string to your mask. Put the mask on your face and pretend you are the Gruffalo.
Step 1
Distribute two pieces of paper, a pencil or pen, crayons and a pair of scissors to each child.
Step 2
On a piece of paper, write the title of the book “The Gruffalo” in block letters with spaces in between. Decorate each letter with the crayons.
Step 3
Ask the children to cut out each letter into a separate square tile and place the letters randomly in front of them.
Step 4
Look carefully at the letters and combine them to make your own new words. Write down the words you have made on a separate piece of paper.
Step 5
Write down how many words you were able to find as well as what they mean. How many verbs and nouns did you find?
Step 1
This activity encourages you to create an example of what a Gruffalo trap could look like. You will need a pencil, a piece of paper, crayons, an eraser and a marker. Distribute these to the children.
Step 2
Ask the children to think about what the Gruffalo likes to eat and how you can use it as part of your Gruffalo trap. The children should then draw their own version of the trap to catch the Gruffalo.
Step 3
In a new picture, draw and show the Gruffalo approaching the trap that you drew in step 2.
Step 4
Draw a picture showing the Gruffalo trying to catch his food.
Step 5
Draw a picture of the Gruffalo stuck in the trap.
