© Oxford University Press 2016. No sharing, copying or adaptation of materials permitted except by subscribers to Oxford Owl.

Oxford Level 11

Clever Monkey Author: Stephen Elboz Illustrator: Peter BowmanTeaching notes author: Becca Heddle Book type: novel

About All StarsAll Stars is a series of chapter fiction books written specifically for able readers aged 5 to 7 years. The books offer engaging, content-appropriate stories for infants at reading levels that will motivate and challenge your high-ability readers. All Stars are primarily for independent reading, but can be used in a variety of ways, including in able-reader guided reading sessions and in speaking, writing and drama activities.All Stars is endorsed by Potential Plus, a leading charity which supports children with high learning potential. You can find out more about Potential Plus at www.potentialplusuk.org.

SynopsisWhen the monkeys of Monkey Land Safari Park find the head keeper’s keys, they can’t wait to dress as humans and see the world outside. But two burglars capture them and force the adult monkeys to commit a crime. Locked in the thieves’ van, Sandy thinks quickly. With his sister Jem, he drives the van home to fetch the head keeper, who helps to foil the burglars. The keeper ends up giving the monkeys their own set of keys and clothes, with a warning to use them wisely in future.

Group/Guided readingIntroducing the story• (Predicting) Look at the front cover. Ask: What do you think the monkeys might be talking about?

• (Predicting) Read the blurb on the back cover. Ask: What do you think the keys might be for?

• (Clarifying) Read page 5, then ask: Can you explain what a safari park is? Have you ever visited one?

• (Predicting) Staying on page 5, ask: What do you think the ‘exciting news’ might be?

• (Predicting) Look at the picture on page 23. Ask: What do you think the monkeys are doing here? Why might they be putting clothes on? Where do you think they might have got the clothes from?

• Some of the more challenging words and their definitions are listed on the front inside cover of the book. Encourage the children to look at these words and talk about their meaning to help build familiarity before children read the story.

• Here are some additional tricky words that may be useful:

• burglars – people who break into houses and steal things

• sweltering – uncomfortably hot and sweaty

• shattered – broken into little pieces

• innocent – harmless

All Stars

All Stars Pack 3:Clever MonkeyRonald the Tough SheepThe Jam Street PuzzleToffee and MarmaladeBrer Rabbit’s TrickbagPsid and Bolter

Australia: Fluent Levels 25–26

How to get in touch:

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1

The clever monkeys in Monkey Land Safari

Park want to explore outside their gates.

But there is danger everywhere.

Will Sandy and Jem be able to save the day?

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STEPHEN ELBOZ PETER BOWMAN

CLEVERMONKEY

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© Oxford University Press 2016. No sharing, copying or adaptation of materials permitted except by subscribers to Oxford Owl.

Reading the story• Ask the children to read the story aloud and help where necessary. Praise and encourage them as

they read.

• (Predicting) Pause at the end of page 12. Ask: Where do you think Milton Grizzlefur might be leading the monkeys? Why?

• (Clarifying) After reading page 19, ask: Why don’t Jem and his dad know where humans keep their clothes?

• (Clarifying) Pause at the top of page 23. Point out the punctuation above the picture, and discuss what it means. Ask children to read the section aloud with suitable intonation.

• (Clarifying) Pause at the picture on page 29. Ask: What do you think Sandy’s mum is talking about?

• (Clarifying) After reading page 30, ask: Why do you think it would be good to walk on the less brightly lit side of the road?

• (Clarifying / Predicting) At the end of page 32, check that children know what ‘reversing’ means. Ask: What do you think the driver of the van is going to do?

• (Questioning / Clarifying) Pause at the end of page 38. Ask: Have you got any questions at this point in the story? (e.g. prompt children to question motives or what might happen next, etc). Ask: Why has Chas Smeelly kept Sandy and Jem?

• (Summarizing) At the end of page 50, ask the children to summarize what has happened in Chapter 7.

Returning to the story • (Summarizing) Ask: Do you think the monkeys were right to leave Monkey Land? Why?

• (Clarifying) Turn back to page 33. Ask: Why do you think Mum and Dad huddle with Sandy and Jem between them? How do you think they are feeling here?

• (Clarifying / Summarizing) Ask: What was the difference between the monkeys’ burglary and what Bantam Fogg and Chas Smeelly were planning to do?

• (Clarifying) Reread page 39. Ask: How did Mum and Dad feel about what they were going to do? How can you tell?

• (Clarifying / Predicting) Ask: Why do you think Mr Otterbank wanted to leave before the policeman became conscious again?

• (Predicting) Ask: What do you think Sandy would have done if he hadn’t got the keys to drive the van?

• (Questioning) Ask: Do you have any questions you’d like to ask Jem about his adventures?

Independent reading• Introduce the story as in the Group/Guided reading section above.

• Encourage the children to read the story as independently as possible. Remember to give them lots of encouragement and praise.

• Encourage the children to use a dictionary to look up any unfamiliar words.

• Encourage the children to answer the questions on the inside covers of the book.

•Able readers often read quickly but sometimes skim parts or do not fully understand what they are reading. Try:

• stopping the children from time to time and asking them to explain what is happening in the story at that point, or who a character is,

• asking the children to examine the pictures and speech bubbles (if present). Encourage the children to tell you what information the pictures or speech bubbles give us,

• reminding children to look out for the difference between what is being said and what is being thought by the characters. Can they show you an example?

© Oxford University Press 2016. No sharing, copying or adaptation of materials permitted except by subscribers to Oxford Owl.

• Prompt more able readers to think about alternative language choices when exploring the text. For example, ‘Can you think of any other words the author could have used to describe how this character felt here?’

• Even able readers may need to pause to work out a new or tricky word. Encourage them to reread the whole sentence again to make sure they understand the context of the word.

• Find even more books for your able readers at BookMatch, the children’s book recommendation tool specially designed for teachers, available free on Oxford Owl. Filter by year group and Oxford Level to find age-appropriate books to stretch your most able: www.oxfordowl.co.uk

Speaking, listening and drama activities• Debating which character is cleverer.

• Put the children into small groups and explain that they are going to try to answer the question: Who is cleverer, Milton Grizzlefur or Mr Otterbank?

• First, each group will need to find examples of where each character is clever.

• Once they have this information, the small groups should have a discussion, looking at the examples they have found. They should end by deciding who is the cleverer. You could then have a whole group vote.

Writing activities• Writing PC Duffle’s version of events.

• Explain that children will write PC Duffle’s version of what happened on the night of the monkey escape.

• They will need to make notes about what happened. Encourage them to check in the book exactly what events PC Duffle himself saw, and to think how he felt about them. Ask: What do you think he found and thought when he came to?

• Children write a short paragraph as if by PC Duffle, saying what happened that night.

• When they have finished writing, children check their punctuation and correct any mistakes they find.

Cross-curricular suggestionScience• Using books or the Internet, children research monkeys and where they live, what they eat and

any other facts about their behaviour. Children can present their findings as a poster.

© Oxford University Press 2016. No sharing, copying or adaptation of materials permitted except by subscribers to Oxford Owl.

Clever Monkey Curriculum links and assessment

Links to Oxford Reading Criterion Scale• Can make predictions about a text using a range of clues, e.g. experience of books written by the same author, experience of books already read on a similar theme, or book title, cover and blurb. (RCS Standard 3, 7)• Can provide simple explanations about events or information, e.g. why a character acted in a particular way. (RCS Standard 3, 9)• Can read aloud with intonation, taking into account a wider range of punctuation (. ? ! , ). (RCS Standard 3, 15)• Is beginning to read between the lines, using clues from text and illustrations, to discuss thoughts, feelings and actions. (RCS Standard 3, 23)

ENGLAND The National Curriculum in England: English Programme of Study, Year 2

National Curriculum objectives Book-related assessment pointers

Spoken language

use spoken language to develop understanding through speculating, hypothesizing, imagining and exploring ideas (SpokLang.7)

Encourage the children to explore all ideas and come to a conclusion in the speaking and listening task.

Reading: Word reading

continue to apply phonic knowledge and skills as the route to decode words until automatic decoding has become embedded and reading is fluent (Y2 ReadWord.1)

Can the children use phonics knowledge alongside other strategies to read unfamiliar words?

Reading: Comprehension

drawing on what they already know or on background information and vocabulary provided by the teacher (Y2 ReadComp.2i)

Can the children apply their own experience to answer some of the questions about the story?

Writing: Composition

writing narratives about personal experiences and those of others (real and fictional) (Y2 WritComp.1i)

Encourage the children to write as if they were PC Duffle.

proofreading to check for errors in spelling, grammar and punctuation (e.g. ends of sentences punctuated correctly) (Y2 WritComp.3iii)

Can the children improve their punctuation on a reread?

SCOTLAND Curriculum for Excellence: Literacy and English experiences and outcomes, First Level

Experiences and outcomes Book-related assessment pointers

Listening and talking

When listening and talking with others for different purposes, I can exchange information, experiences, explanations, ideas and opinions, and clarify points by asking questions or by asking others to say more. (LIT 1-09a)

Encourage the children to explore all ideas and come to a conclusion in the speaking and listening task.

Reading I can use my knowledge of sight vocabulary, phonics, context clues, punctuation and grammar to read with understanding and expression. (ENG 1-12a)

Can the children use phonics knowledge alongside other strategies to read unfamiliar words?

I am learning to select and use strategies and resources before I read, and as I read, to help make the meaning of texts clear. (LIT 1-13a)

Can the children apply their own experience to answer some of the questions about the story?

Writing I can describe and share my experiences and how they made me feel. (LIT 1-30a)

Encourage the children to write as if they were PC Duffle.

Throughout the writing process, I can check that my writing makes sense. (LIT 1-23a)

Can the children improve their punctuation on a reread?

© Oxford University Press 2016. No sharing, copying or adaptation of materials permitted except by subscribers to Oxford Owl.

WALES Curriculum for Wales: Foundation Phase Framework, Year 2

Framework objectives Book-related assessment pointers

Oracy share activities and information to complete a task (Y2_OracColl.2) Encourage the children to explore all ideas and come to a conclusion in the speaking and listening task.

Reading decode text with unfamiliar content or vocabulary sustaining comprehension throughout (Y2_ReadStrat.6)

Can the children use phonics knowledge alongside other strategies to read unfamiliar words?

draw upon relevant personal experience and prior knowledge to support understanding of texts (Y2_ReadComp.4)

Can the children apply their own experience to answer some of the questions about the story?

Writing refine the use of a storyline within imaginative writing (Y2_WritStru.3)

Encourage the children to write as if they were PC Duffle.

reread and improve their writing to ensure that it makes sense (Y2_WritMean.5)

Can the children improve their punctuation on a reread?

NORTHERN IRELAND Levels of Progression in Communication across the curriculum: Levels 1 and 2

Levels of Progression Book-related assessment pointers

Talking and listening

ask and answer questions to develop understanding (L2_com_talk.2ii)

Encourage the children to explore all ideas and come to a conclusion in the speaking and listening task.

Reading use a range of reading strategies (L2_com_read.2)

Can the children use phonics knowledge alongside other strategies to read unfamiliar words?

talk about what they read and answer questions (L1_com_read.5)

Can the children apply their own experience to answer some of the questions about the story?

Writing express thoughts, feelings and ideas from within their experience using a general vocabulary (L2_com_write.2i)

Encourage the children to write as if they were PC Duffle.

make changes in relation to agreed criteria (L2_com_write.1ii)

Can the children improve their punctuation on a reread?