Where the Forest Meets the Sea: 1

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Have students bring in their favourite recipe from home and orally present it to the class starting with the phrase: ‘I like my … cooked like …’. Gorgeous collage illustrations highlight this cautionary tale about a tropical rain forest in North Queensland, Australia. The story features a little boy with a wild imagination who explores the pristine forest as his father fishes. It's a fun story to read aloud and we enjoyed reading it together and pointing at all the interesting details we saw in the picture. Ask students if they have read a Jeannie Baker book before. If so, does that experience help them predict anything about this book? Creating texts – Create short texts to explore, record and report ideas and events using familiar words and beginning writing knowledge (ACELY1651) Opening this expertly designed picture book reveals two parallel wordless tales: one to be read left to right, the other right to left. The stories follow a day in the family life of two boys, who Continue reading »

Read the book as a class and discuss students’ predictions. Were they correct? What was different? Was the book what they expected?

The boy in Where the Forest Meets the Sea imagines all kinds of things through the trunks of the trees and leaves of the forest. Children imagine what they might have seen before writing their own story. I myself would borrow this book as often as I could and just stare at the pictures....I so wished it had texture because I really wanted to touch it too....which I refrained from because of the drool. The book is about a young Australian boy, who's father takes him to a Rain forest by boat. The young boy explores the rain forest and pretends it is a long time ago when extinct animals lived. As he travels through the rain forest, he finds 'ghostly' images, including a dinosaur, a young aboriginal child and a holiday resort build by the sea. When the young boys exploration comes to an end, he leaves the forest wondering if he would ever return to its preserved condition. Collect some of the natural materials found in the text, and then perhaps classify the materials for a science lesson, and then proceed to makeindividual collages for an art class.

Ask the students to retell the story as a sequence of events. Then get them to change one element; "how would This has always been one of my favourite illustrated childrens books. Jeannie Baker's collages of the ancient Daintree rain forest and tropical waters are vivid, as is the environmental message that her books convey.Have students create pictures of themselves with the characters from the book in each of the three environments, i.e. a rainforest environment, a coastal environment and their school environment. Students can incorporate drawing, painting or other types of artistic mediums. Students will also create speech bubbles and written dialogue for one or more of the characters and place them in an appropriate spot on the pictures. A great book is always a fantastic place to start when planning an integrated learning experience for your students, after all, books are familiar andengaging. The themes running throughout this text lend itself to many regularly taught topics.

Transition – Art (Explain to students that they are creating a poster using recycled objects incl. wool, buttons etc.). They can use any materials, images and/ or text to relay their message about saving the forests. When students are asked to bring in recycled items for their poster it also involves parents in the learning process. After crossing the river by car ferry, we meander up the winding highway to Cape Tribulation. The teenager has a slight breakdown when he realises there’s no telephone service in the area and even the people who live in town can’t use mobiles. Present students with a statement along the lines of: ‘The Daintree Rainforest is a good topic for a children’s book.’ Around the room place four signs that say ‘strongly agree’, ‘strongly disagree’, ‘agree’ and ‘disagree’. Have students stand next to the sign that reflects their opinions most strongly.We walk with him among the ancient trees as he pretends it is a time long ago, when extinct and rare animals lived in the forest and aboriginal children played there. But for how much longer will the forest still be there, he wonders? The reader is allowed to follow the child on his wonderful journey, exploring nature with his senses: “I sit very still and watch and listen.” Invite the children to look closely at the pictures: What can they spot? Are all the creatures there at the same time as the boy? How can you tell which animals are long gone? What can you spot when you look around in your environment? What do you think was there in the past or will be there in the future? There is a very strong environmental message in the book that if we truly immerse ourselves in nature and experience it with all our senses, we will want to preserve it and keep it this secret magical place that we visit and leave without a trace.