The BFG by Roald Dahl

Puffin, 2016. ISBN: 9780141365428. 224pp., pbk.
When Sophie is woken by a silver moonbeam shining through a crack in the curtains, and, against the rules of the orphanage in which she lives, she gets out of bed to close the curtain she has no idea that her life is about to take her on the most amazing adventure and be changed forever.
For as she peeks out she sees a most amazing sight . . . coming up the other side of the street was something black. Something tall and black. Something very tall and very black and very thin.
It is nearly 40 years since I first picked up this book by Roald Dahl, creator of classic characters like Willy Wonka and Miss Truncbull and as I read the first few pages, I could hear myself sharing the story with my students. All these years on and countless students have met the iconic big, friendly giant as it has been my go-to book in so many situations. Share the passage of his description, get the children to identify the keywords and then interpret these in drawing and discuss why each child's work is different even though they started with the same information. Drop coloured dye onto paper towelling, write your dream on it, put it in a jar and open it on the last day of school to see if you still have the same dreams . . .
Using his gift for language that remains with us and his irreverence for adults, Dahl delights children with his tales and it is time now for the next generation to become fans, just as those who have met him previously have done.
So, on this Roald Dahl Day 2020 introduce your students to one of the world's greatest storytellers and let the fun begin.
Barbara Braxton