Peter's Granny lives in an old house surrounded by an overgrown and mysterious garden. At first when Granny suggests that he should go exploring in the garden he isn't confident to go on his own. Then he makes friends with a very inquisitive dog called Ben…

Brave with Ben was written by Christobel Mattingley and illustrated by Elizabeth Honey
You are the designer of a new edition of the book and it is your job to write a profile of both women for the end papers.
What information do you think the readers would like to know?
How can you make sure the information is accurate and up-to-date?

Granny's garden was huge, wild and overgrown.
The trees were higher than two-storey houses.
Weedy earthen tracks twisted through bracken and bushes and were swallowed by dark thickets tangled with creepers.
To Peter, visiting for the first time, by himself, all alone, it was strange territory, unexplored, unknown.

There are some great descriptions in Brave with Ben. Make a list of all the adjectives and nouns in this book

Mix the adjectives and nouns up to make different descriptions than the ones used in the book.

Use the adjectives and nouns to make up some poetry.
Start with a noun in the centre of a circle and then in the next layer of the circle have 4 adjectives to describe it. Then on the next outer layer of the circle have something that it does.
Alternatively you can draw symbols in the sections of the circle to represent the words and make a pictorial poem!

Then the poem can be read in different ways. Here's an example ~

Track,
Twisting,curving,sweeping,creeping,
Into Granny's garden
Into the gloomy bush - the waiting bush
To find the TREASURE

Share your creations with the other schools who are also doing this activity.

Have a look at the garden plans on Backyard Blitz for examples of a birds-eye view perspective. If you click on the little map, you will see a bigger version. Look carefully at how they have created a legend which clearly shows which plants have been used where.

Now use the description in the story to create your own map of Granny's garden.
What are the main trees and shrubs that grow there?
How will you show these in your legend?
Use these sites to help you identify the key features of each species so you can draw them accurately.
Australian National Botanic Gardens

Royal Botanic Gardens, Melbourne

The Society for Growing Australian Plants

How accurate are Elizabeth Honey's illustrations?
They were done a long time before the Internet was invented. How do you think she was able to draw them so well?
Why do you think the illustrations are in monochrome rather than full colour?

Peter turned and ran. Ran and ran, jumping, tripping, blundering, stumbling. It seemed like miles. It seemed like hours. And yet when he panted out of the bush Granny was on the kitchen steps shaking the lunch cloth.

Sometimes, when we are afraid, our imagination makes us think of funny things .
Why was Peter so afraid?
Had he really seen clusters of green and gold grubs, and a strange animal with many antlers?
What had he seen?

When our eyes play tricks on our mind, it is called an optical illusion.
Find out more about this phenomenon at the Museum of Ophthalmology and then see what you can make from these illusions.
Exploratorium Online Exhibits
Grand Illusions
IllusionWorks
SandlotScience

Now create some optical illusions of your own. Look closely at the gum nuts on p. 13, and the banksia pod on p. 14. or all the seed pods on the end papers.
What trees do they belong to?
Can you find some like that in your backyard or school playground?
If you can, get an adult to help you cut them open so you can see what they look like inside. Then draw what you see and challenge your teacher and friends to identify them!

Even if there weren't green and gold grubs or strange animals with many antlers, there were many creatures in Granny's garden watching Peter.
What sorts of things do you think might have been there?
Take this tour to see and hear some of the hidden inhabitants.

How important are these minibeasts?
Read Biodiversity in your backyard - It's a jungle out there! to find out.

What is biodiversity?
The Community Biodiversity Network has lots of information and fact sheets written especially for primary school students to help you understand the concept.

What can we do about it?
One of the first steps to saving our environment is to start in your own backyard. By planting native gardens and retaining old trees, an endless array of habitats or homes can be provided for many of our threatened species.
Talk with your teachers and principal to see if there is a space in your school playground or the nearby neighbourhood that your class could turn into a haven for your native flora and fauna, as well as giving an area for other children to play.
What sorts of things would you need to consider and do?

Now use the things you have learned to help design a national park that will offer protection to some of our larger threatened species.

After tea, he said to Granny, "Where's the television?"
"I don't have television," Granny answered. "It doesn't come across the mountains. But I've something here I think you'll enjoy even more."
Peter did not think that likely, especially when she produced a pile of books, old and worn, with faded covers.
"Your father loved these books," she said.

Which books and authors were your parents' favourites?
Read some of them online at A Collection of Great Literature Online

What makes a book a classic?
How do we learn about the books that our parents enjoyed?
Which books have you read in the last 3 - 5 years might become classics for your children?
Create a class list of classics and send it to St Luke's Primary School before August 25 and we will let you know the Top 10. Make sure you put Classics Choice in the subject line.

Imagine you live in a place as remote as Granny's where there is no electricity.
What sorts of things could you do

during the day
in the evening
on your own
with your family

Organise a 'no-television week' and keep a record of all the activities your classmates did instead of watching television. Share your list with the other classes doing this activity.

As Peter stood on the steps watching the giant kaleidoscope, two visitors arrived.
"Hullo," the lady said. "You must be Peter. I'm Miss Digby and this is Ben. Perhaps you two would like to play together."

Why does having Ben as a companion make such a difference to Peter?
What does being brave mean?
Write a story about when you have been brave and share it with the rest of us.
Ask your librarian to help you find other books that tell about someone who overcomes their fears.

You don't have to be brave to explore these websites, but see if you can learn as much as Peter did.

Treetures

Parks Victoria Education Program

Ranger Rick's Kid's Zone -- National Wildlife Federation

Yowie Kingdom

Toucan Sam's Encyclopedia of the Rain Forest

VirtualRainForest-an online tour