How to Catch a Star

Product Information

The boy eventually catches the reflection of his beloved star in the sea and through his own creativity in the end he becomes the owner of what he believes to be a fallen star from the sky. For any child reading the book or listening to it being read, they will leave with the feeling that they to can overcome challenges and obtain their hearts desires, making their dreams come true with determination and will power alone. Education Shed Ltd, Severn House, Severn Bridge, Riverside North, Bewdley, Worcestershire, UK, DY12 1AB I have found that a Talk 4 Writing approach works really well with this story as it has a simple and repetitive structure that is easy to learn orally through use of a simple story map. It lends itself to fun actions too. From the illustrator of the #1 smash hit The Day the Crayons Quit comes a story about wishing, persevering, and reaching for the stars.

How to Catch A Star tells the tale of the boy as he goes on a quest to catch a star of his very own exploring the boys plots to seize his star – ranging from using a lifebelt as a lasso to jumping up and grabbing it. Jeffers uses words sparingly but when he does they’re the right ones - with classic lines like “He thought he could fly up in his spaceship and just grab the star. But his spaceship had run out of petrol last Tuesday when he flew to the moon”– such sparkles of humour make it a great read for adults too. I then like to change things a little by creating an instructional text ‘How to Catch a Star’. The children learn this text map and then innovate it, choosing their own way to catch one. This can be written up in a simple format following the key features of writing instructions.The story is all about a little boy who loved stars very much, so much so that he begins a quest to find & possess his very own star. The boy faces many almost impossible challenges on his quest to make his dream of having his very own star come true.

This week our bedtime story was chosen by Conor (who camps out in Easons Bookstore in Castlebar every time we go in). He loves the large books with lots of visually appealing illustrations with fewer words as he is not reading yet and primarily communicates & understands the world around him through pictures. The Author/Illustrator Oliver Jeffers did not disappoint in his premier work “How to catch a Star”. How to Catch A Star Hailey is 7 and is more than capable of reading the short text in the book yet she too was enthralled, primarily by the vague, crisp images used, as she could see herself in the boy and recognized her own surroundings in that which the boy found himself. An excellent book for children who are at the early readers stage too, as the images together with the short text will help guide them and the boy on his journey. I also love the story ‘Katie and the Starry Night’ which works beautifully with the Oliver Jeffers book and can lead to art activities based on the Van Gough painting.

The simple illustrations can be used as a sequencing activity on a time line or a washing line as the children retell it independently. The first DIY recipe you can get from Celeste is for a Magic Wand. The Magic Wand lets you change clothes between eight different outfits in the same way your Tool Ring lets you switch through preset tools. Revisit the story of How to Catch a Star using the story map to retell. Discuss ideas for catching a star! Explain that today they are going to write these as special instructions.