Very last first time

Last week, we read The Very Last First Time by Jan Andrews, illustrated by Ian Wallace. This was published in 1985 but is certainly still worth a read and would be especially well placed in conjunction with learning about the Inuits and the Arctic.

This book features in the Five in a Row curriculum although we didn't follow the Five in a Row suggestions with this book.

This book is one of the most scary children's books I've read. The children didn't seem quite so bothered! The book tells the story of an Inuit girl who goes hunting for mussels on the seabed, under the ice, for the first time. The whole concept seems hair-raising! We watched a video clip showing this activity taking place. The children were so taken with this that we watched this every time that we read the book.

The story takes place in Ungava Bay in Canada so we found this on the map and listened to the Canadian national anthem.

There is plenty to discuss in this book including

• polar bears
• clothing for the ice
• pointillism
• safety
• taking risks to obtain food
• book titles.

We did the ice activities

ice blocks for building

 that I have already posted about to go with the book and made ice pictures complete with polar bear (idea from That artist woman.) I'm rather into substituting ingredients so having run out of white paint used white pastel for the polar bear which wasn't quite the same hence the rather faint bears.

We attempted to make an igloo from an egg box. All I can say about this activity is that it was a disaster-the pieces of egg box refused to stick and it looked nothing at all like an igloo.

We added a couple of  books about polar bears.

Big bear, Little bear by David Bedford and Jane Chapman

Ice bear by Nicola Davies

Very last first time is one of those books that we are likely to read again and again.

This is linked to Tuesdays Treasures.