Lila and the secret of rain

This is a writing journey which is completed in 15 steps. This is the same number of steps in which we would develop

writing in class.

It is based upon a story set in Kenya, called ‘Lila and the secret of rain’.

During this unit, you will be thinking about the weather, and how it can affect

our mood and have an impact upon the places we live.

You will be developing your vocabulary to describe how a character might be feeling at key points in their story,

and putting yourself in their shoes to explain what they might be thinking.

You will learn how to create your own ‘call and response’ poem/song, before moving on to your final writing

challenge- creating your own version of the story.

We recommend that you complete 1 step each day. Everything you need is included; from each session’s focus and

any images or resources you need to complete it. You don’t need to print any of this out (but you can if you wish), as

any writing can be completed in the book which we sent home.

If you’re at home or in school we will all be completing the same work, supported by your grown up or your teacher.

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Remember you can always send your work in to us, we’d love to have a look and a read of your hard work.

Happy writing!

Step 1

*Look at these images of different kinds of weather… which type of weather do you like best? Why?

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*What would happen if the sun shone every day and it never rained? How would that make you feel?

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*Use this sentence scaffold to help you to

explain:

I like it when the weather is...

because...

Here’s my go: I like it when the weather is

raining with thunder and lightning

because I love to watch the shapes and

colours the lightening makes in the sky.

I think the thunder sounds like a Giant’s

tummy rumbling!

*Take a look at this image…what do you notice?

Jot down what you can see, how this place makes you feel and where in the world you think it is…

Wh

I can see...

I feel...

I think it is...

*The location of this image is the country of Kenya, which is in the continent of Africa.

*You can see where Kenya is using Google Earth: https://www.google.co.uk/intl/en_uk/earth/

* Or here are some maps to show you too…

*Kenya is about two and a half times bigger than the UK, and the equator line runs across the middle of it – which means part of it is in the

Northern Hemisphere and part is in the Southern Hemisphere. Being close the equator means it has a very different climate to the one we have

in the UK…it is hot nearly all of the time!

Step 2

*Have a look at these images – they are all from traditional Kenyan villages and Kenyan landscapes. What can you see?

*Let’s zoom in on this image:

*Make a list of all the nouns (names of things) you can see…I have added two nouns in for you already…

soil mountains

*We are going to expand on what we can see, by describing it using adjectives.

*To help you, think about… What colours do you notice? What size are things?

Also, use your senses to help you.

*Add your adjectives around the sides of the image on the page above.

*Remember to look really closely...

*Here are my adjectives for the sky: blue, bright, clear, wide, endless

*You could use the colour thesaurus to help you be very specific about the hue of the colours you might use…

*Using this I can be more specific about the

‘blue’ of the sky…

cyan blue cerulean blue

Step 3

*Now we will use your adjectives and nouns from Step 2 to build to expanded noun phrases. Look here to see

exactly what an expanded noun phrase is:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/topics/zwwp8mn/articles/z3nfw6f

*Take a noun at a time from the list that you made, and then choose the adjectives which best describe it.

You could use one adjective, try to use two, or thinking about getting ready for year 2…you could use 3 adjectives (we call this a Dof3…description of

3), you could even do all three to really impress us!

Here’s my go for the sky:

1 adjective: the bright sky

2 adjectives: the bright, cyan blue sky

Dof3: the endless, bright, cyan blue sky

*Try to come up with at least 2 different expanded noun phrases for each noun:

Here’s my second set of ideas for the sky:

1 adjective: the sunny sky

2 adjectives: the hot, sunny sky

Dof3: the wide, hot, sunny sky

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Step 4

*Take a look at the front cover of the book we will be using to help with our writing – it’s where the image in step 1 comes from.

*We are now going to read the story…but first let’s check some of the ‘new’ and ‘unfamiliar’ vocabulary and phrases we will meet in the story

and make sure we know what it means. See if you can match the word or phrase to the correct meaning. (answers at the end of the document)

Word or phrase Definition (meaning)

…the sun beat down right at the bottom of a mountain

…weed the village garden pull up the plants that you don’t want to grow in the village

…the well crying with lots and lots of tears

the foot of a very tall mountain lots of water everywhere

weeping the sun shone down and it was so hot!

scorching a deep black colour

ebony a deep hole into the ground with water at the bottom

emotion so hot that it feels like you are burning

awash a person’s feelings

*The story is attached as separate document to read, or you can read a long and listen to it here: https://youtu.be/ry8vVsQER00

*Who can you see?

*Who might she be?

*What is the weather like?

*Is that the same as the weather we saw in the image in step 1?

*Why is it raining now?

*What do you think is going to happen in the story?

*What is ‘the secret of rain’?

*Can you put the images from the story in the correct order? There are 3 versions of the task, choose the one you feel confident completing.

Version1

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Version2

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Version3

The clouds grew darker and

darker, filling with Lila’s

sadness…until the sky was

ebony with emotions.

One night Lila overheard her

mama talking about eh well that

had dried up and the crops were

failing. “Without water there will be

no life.” Lila heard her mama say.

By the time she reached home,

all the villagers were

celebrating the rain with

music and dancing.

One evening Lila’s

grandfather told her a story

about a man that he’s met

once when he was a boy – a

man who had told him the

secret of rain.

Lila began to cry.“What can I do?”

she said to the sky.

“It is too hot to collect firewood, too

hot to weed the village garden,

and too hot to milk the cow.

The well is dry and the crops are

failing. Without crops there will be

no food, without food the people in

the village will become sick, and

without water there will be no life.”

For weeks and weeks the sun beat

down on the Kenyan village where

Lila lived.

Lila joyfully lifted up her

hands to the crying sky, for

each raindrop felt like one of

mama’s kisses.

Lila walked and walked and

walked, and at last found herself

at the foot of a very tall mountain.

She began to climb higher, and

higher and higher.

When Lila reached the top of the

mountain she began to tell the sky

the saddest things she knew.

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Step 5

*Read the story again…and let’s see what you can remember about the story …

*Now think about how you feel about the story: What did you like and/ or dislike?

*Which part of the story is your favourite? Why?

*Which part of the story is the most memorable? (which bit sticks in your head?) Why?

*Was there anything you found strange or surprising? What questions do you have about the story?

*Does it remind you of anything you have read before?

*Were there any patterns in the language or the structure of the story that you noticed?

*Using your ideas from these questions, complete the ‘Tell me’ grid for the story.

*Who are the main characters? What are their names?

*How do you think you would be feeling if you were one of the children in the village at the start of the story?

*What will happen if there is no rain?

*Who tells Lila about the secret of rain?

*Where does Lila need to go and what does she need to do?

*How can we tell it takes Lila a long time to climb up the mountain?

*What helps us to know the rain is coming?

*Why does the rain finally fall from the sky?

*Why is the rain compared to tears?

* How do you think you would be feeling if you were one of the children in the village at the end of the story?

Likes

What was memorable for you?

What was your favourite part?

Dislikes

Was there anything you didn’t like?

Puzzles

Was there anything you found strange of surprising?

What questions do you have about the story?

Patterns and connections

Did it remind you of anything you have read before?

Were there any patterns in the language or the

structure of the story that you noticed?

Step 6&7

* We are going to look at the key parts of the story, and focus on what Lila is thinking and feeling.

*Read the story again and really focus on the character of Lila – put yourself in her shoes…What is she thinking? How is she feeling?

*We will be adding thoughts into the and feelings in the on each of the parts from the story which are below.

*You can use the feelings and emotions mat to help you.

Step 8

*Focus on the section of the story where the villagers are celebrating the rain’s arrival, with music and dancing.

*We are going to write a poem/song which the villagers could say/sing at this point in the story. We are going to use a ‘call and response’

pattern to help us structure our poem/song. This is a traditional way that songs are created in Kenya and other African counties.

*These are know as ‘A’ ‘B’ call and response patterns…

*In one pattern there is a leader (A) who says/sings a line and the others (B) sing it back

*In another pattern the leader sings the same line every time and the others sing a different line to reply to this each time.

You can hear some here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFWRcXYsYMo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evnKl9tttuc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XuOCaOFumNs

*Look back at the part of the story where it starts to rain…how is Lila feeling at this point?

*Imagine you are Lila on the top of the mountain…each raindrop felt like mama's kisses, and you are feeling the rain on your skin for the first

time in a very long time…now you are running down the mountain in happiness to the villagers who are celebrating.

*What can you see? What can you hear? How does the rain feel? What might you smell? What can you see the rain doing to your crops?

Add your ideas to the senses grid below:

Step 9

*You are going to use your ideas from step 8 to build your call and response poem/song today.

*Have a look at mine, so you can see the structure you will be using to help you build your one.

*I have used an ‘A’ ‘B’ call and response pattern, where ‘A’ repeats the same line and ‘B’ answers with something different each time.

A:Thank you for the rain

B: It feels like kisses on our cheeks

A: Thank you for the rain

B: It feels tingly and loving

A: Thank you for the rain

B: It makes out crops grow tall and green

*Use the same ‘A’ ‘B’ call and response pattern, and see what ‘B’ responses you can create.

*In the grid below write down as many ideas as you can which the ‘B’ would say…

A: ‘Thank you for the rain’

‘B’ responses…

…you don’t have to fill in every section, but there are plenty just in case you have lots of ideas.

Step 10

*Let’s put your call and response poem/song together…cut out each of the ideas you created in Step9, along with the repeated ‘A’ phrases on this

page.

*Now use the repeated ‘A’ phrase and your ideas to build your own call and response poem/song.

*You might not want to use all of your ideas and you might discover that you can arrange your ideas in lots of different ways.

*Aim for a minimum of 3 call and responses from ‘A’ and ‘B’.

* Once you have found the perfect order for your call and response poem/song, stick it down – or take a photo on a phone or tablet, so it is safe.

Thank you for the rain.

Thank you for the rain

Thank you for the rain

Thank you for the rain

Thank you for the rain

Thank you for the rain

Thank you for the rain

*Now you have completed the layout for your call and

response poem, you are now going to ‘write it up’ and

‘publish’ it.

*Use your best handwriting, or you might choose to

type it up on your computer or tablet.

*There is some paper on the next 2 pages you can

choose to use to write your published copy onto.

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Thank you for the rain.

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Thank you for the rain.

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Thank you for the rain.

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Thank you for the rain.

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Step 11 – Your final writing challenge!

*We are now going to use the structure of the story of ‘Lila and the secret of rain’, the problem caused by an endless, extreme weather, a child

hero and their thoughts and feelings, to create our own version on the story.

*Our story is going to be based in the UK…in Southampton

*The main character of the story is going to be…YOU!

*The main theme for out story is: it rains more than it is sunny in Southampton and everything is wet, wet, wet. We will need to climb up the

tallest building in Southampton and tell the sky a joke so that it smiles and the sun comes out.

*Your story title will be: ‘_____________and the secret of Sun’ (add your name on to the dashed lines)

*Let’s start by thinking about, or finding the best, funniest jokes that we could use to tell the sun to make it laugh!

*If you need some joke help, the Beano website has loads of jokes you can try out:

https://www.beano.com/categories/jokes

*Pick your funniest three and jot them down here…you can then test them out on your family and friends to see which one gets the biggest laughs.

This can help you to decide which one will make it into your final story.

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*Now let’s start to think about planning our rainy story…

Have a think about these questions and discuss them with an adult.:

How do you feel

when it rains for lots

of days in a row?

What happens to the

plants and the grass

when it rains and

rains and rains?

What can’t you do

when it is raining?

What does the rain

feel like when it

lands on your skin?

Who is the wisest

person you know…who

might tell you the

secret of the sun?

Where in

Southampton is a tall

place that you could

climb to the top of?

Southampton?

How do you feel on a

sunny day?

What does the sun

feel like when it

shines down on you?

What do you love to

do on a sunny day?

Step 12

*You are going to use the ideas that you discussed in step 11 to create a story map. There are 3 versions of the story map to select from – choose

the one which you will be able to complete confidently.

*Under each box on the story map there is a prompt to help you to decide what to put in – you can draw a picture, write down words or phrase,

or do a combination of both to complete this task.

*Remember to look back at the thoughts and feelings that Lila had at the key point in her story (step6&7), as you will probably feel the same way

too.

*Here is my version:

Version 1

How long has it been raining for? Who comes to tell you ‘the secret of the sun’? Which tall place do you climb? The sun comes out and you go home.

What is the problem because of all the rain? How do you feel? How do you feel? Everyone is celebrating, what do you

How do you feel? decide to do in the sun

How do you feel?

Joke I will use

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Feeling: ☺

Feeling: ☺

Feeling: ☺

Feeling: ☺

Version 2

Joke I will use

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Feeling: ☺

Feeling: ☺

Feeling: ☺

Feeling: ☺

Feeling: ☺

Feeling: ☺

How long has it been raining for?

What is it like outside?

What problems has the rain made?

What do you want it to be like instead?

Who comes to tell you the ‘secret of

the sun?

When do you set off on your journey?

Where do you need to get to?

How long does it take to get to the top?

How many jokes do you tell the sun?

How does the weather change once you’ve told

the ‘best’ joke? How does this feel on your skin?

What do you see when you get home?

What is it like now in Southampton?

Are the problems caused by the rain still there?

What do you decide to do now it is sunny?

Version 3 Add thoughts and feelings into the thought bubble and heart shapes.

How long has it been raining for? What is it like outside? Who comes to tell you the ‘secret of the sun?

What problems has the rain made? What do you want it to be like instead?

When do you set off on your journey? Where do you need to get to? How long does it take to get to the top? How many jokes do you tell the sun?

How does the weather change once you’ve told the ‘best’ joke? How does this feel on your skin?

What do you see when you get home? What do you decide to do now it is sunny? What is it like now in Southampton?

Are the problems caused by the rain still there?

Joke I will use

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Step 13 & 14

*You are going to write your story…remember to look at your plan and use the ideas you created in the previous steps.

*Could you add in a ‘Thank you for the sun’ call and response poem/song into your story?

*You can use each picture/part of your plan as a guide, and try to write at least one sentence to accompany each picture, or you can go for

it…write like an author and create detailed paragraphs. Remember to use all your writer’s skills and the ideas and vocabulary you created

during the previous steps. There is some paper you can choose to write on below.

*Here's my story:

It had been raining continuously for weeks and weeks and weeks. The sky was permanently full of fat, heavy dark clouds, and the streets were

filled with cold, dirty, fast flowing rivers. Everyone was fed up.

It was too wet to play outside, too wet to have a barbecue and too wet to go to the beach. The once green, lush, soft grass in the park was now

yellow and mushy and the football pitch had turned into a mud pit. Robyn was so fed up of being stuck inside every single day and even the

ducks looked bored of splashing about in the water that was everywhere.

One cold, wet, miserable day as Robyn tried to find something fun to do, my dear, old Grandma crept up behind her. Quietly, she started to tell

Robyn a story. It was a story form when she was a young girl, and she had met a wise old lady. This lady had told her the ‘secret of the sun’.

Grandma said that to get the sun back, Robyn had to climb up to the tallest tower in Southampton and tell the sky the funniest joke she knew.

Robyn felt excited but also a little bit nervous, because now she knew how to stop the rain!

Determined to stop the rain and get the sun to shine again, Robyn woke up even earlier than the milkman and put on her comfiest shoes and

her most waterproof jacket. Feeling anxious she tiptoed out the house and into the damp, chilly, gloomy streets. Robyn new that the tallest

building in Southampton was the clock tower at the Civic Centre in the centre of town. Feeling determined she set off.

She walked and walked and walked for hours until her legs ached but at last she found herself at the foot of the clock tower.

Robyn snuck inside and began to climb higher and higher and higher.

When Robyn reached the top of the clock tower, she opened the window and carefully leant out. She could see the sun hiding behind a large,

black cloud. She took a deep breath and thought of a funny joke. She shouted in her loudest voice

‘What do Elves learn in school?...the Elf-abet.’

She waited and waited and waited but it didn’t work!

She tried another joke.

‘Why is Humpty Dumpty always so good to play a trick on….because he always falls for it!’

Robyn crossed my fingers hoping it would work but the heavy rain still fell down!

With a panicking feeling in her stomach, she searched her head for the funniest of all jokes before she yelled in a deafening voice

‘What type of underwear do clouds wear?...Thunderpants!’

All of a sudden, the rain stopped! The bright, shining sun burst through the grey clouds. It grew bigger and bigger, warner and warmer and

Robyn felt the warmth of it on her skin. It felt like a warm cuddle from Grandma or one of Mum’s kisses.

As the last cloud melted away, Robyn smiled to herself and felt very proud; She dashed as fast as a cheetah, down, down, down the tower.

Her heart was full of excitement as she ran and ran and ran back home. Her legs were wobbly but eventually she made it to her street.

As she got nearer to her house, she could hear people celebrating and singing.

‘Thank you for the sun.

We can smile again and play outside.

Thank you for the sun.

The green grass can grow and we can go to the park.

Thank you for the sun.

We can eat cold ice cream and sit on the warm beach.’

Robyn ran to her house and saw her whole family outside having a delicious BBQ. She felt delighted. Everyone was so happy and the day was

now bright and warm. Feeling pleased with herself, Robyn sat down on her picnic blanket with her favourite book and plate full of

yummy BBQ food, Over the top of her hot dog Robyn smiled a knowing smile to Grandma, for only they knew that Robyn had saved

Southampton with the secret of the sun.

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Step 15

* Reread your writing, and get your editing pen ready…Does every sentence make sense? Do your ideas flow and link together? Have you got

spot on spelling of the Year 1 and 2 spelling words? Have you used expanded noun phrases/conjunctions/3 in a bed? Do you need to rewrite any

parts of your writing to make it more powerful or read better?

Once it’s finished and fabulous read it to your family, and feel proud of your efforts.

You could even create front cover and blurb for your story.

Word or phrase Definition (meaning)

…the sun beat down the sun shone down and it was so hot!

…weed the village garden pull up the plants that you don’t want to grow in the village

…the well a deep hole into the ground with water at the bottom

the foot of a very tall mountain right at the bottom of a mountain

weeping crying with lots and lots of tears

scorching so hot that it feels like you are burning

ebony a deep black colour

emotion a person’s feelings

awash lots of water everywhere