Theming ideas from 'The Last Noo-Noo' by Jill Murphy

Enquiry using a picture book as stimulus with pupils in reception class

The pupils had been working on thinking of themes and issues in books we read together. We made theme cards about all the themes they could think of.

Then, after reading 'The Last Noo-Noo' we collected all the children's questions. I asked them to classify the questions into ideas they thought were in the book.

They then matched these ideas with the theme cards. I thought this might make the questions more meangiful to everyone.

The children then voted on one of the ideas and its connected themes.

I then asked the children to think about this idea and its themes and ask each other some further questions that we would find interesting to explore in the dialogue that would follow. These secondary questions helped focus the group on building the enquiry in a purposeful direction. Here is how it all went.

Starting questions on The Last Noo-Noo by Jill Murphy

• Why did Grandma say 'nonsense'?
• Why did mum throw the dummies away?
• Why did Marlon have lots of dummies?
• Why did he still need a dummy?
• Why did the monsters tease him?
• Why did the monsters snatch his noo noo?
• Why didn’t Marlon want to give up his dummy?
• Why did he decide to drop his dummy?
• Why did he give up his dummy?
• Why did he plant a noo noo in the ground?

The children grouped the questions into their own ideas and categories

IDEA: It’s about grown ups not being nice. CONCEPTS: unfairness, bullying, power
IDEA: Its about needing something. CONCEPTS: need, comfort and security, staying young, desire
IDEA: It’s about wanting something. CONCEPTS: greed, bullying, fairness
IDEA: It’s about making a change. CONCEPTS: choice, power
IDEA: It’s about wanting more. CONCEPT: greed

The children voted on an area and concept they wanted to talk about together and made a question from the chosen theme of making changes. The question was: 'Why do people make changes?'

Ideas discussed and secondary questions arising from enquiry

• Are changes permanent?
• Do we ever change as people?
• Are we the same person when we grow up?
• Why do we change?
• Do we have a choice in change?
• Do we control change?
• Can we refuse to change?
• Is change necessary?
• Do other people make us change?

Extracts from dialogue

• I think people do make us change, they say you must not have a dummy anymore you are too big
• Yes I agree, I wanted to keep my little bike but it was too small so it got dumped
• I liked it best in reception and we can’t stay there can we?
• We could just stay here and have a new teacher
• But we would only have reception toys
• I don’t care I like playing with baby toys
• CT: Would people laugh if a grown up had a dummy?
• Yes Because they would look silly
• CT: What if David Beckham had one? Would people laugh at him?
• I think so but if he likes that we mustn’t laugh
• Grown ups make people grow up and not have dummies we have to do it
• I didn’t like being a baby so I changed I couldn’t see properly
• You can’t change all by yourself you have to wait
• But grown ups make you wait don’t they?
• CT: Can you explain that a bit more?
• Well, sometimes they say you are not big enough but you are, so you stay a baby
• CT: Do you think you grow up on the inside or the outside?

Homework question agreed upon: Why don’t big kids and grown ups have dummies?