Favourite books: Our Cat Cuddles
2 Jun 2008
Paul Cookson’s daughter just loves this book – and he agrees with her. Its lyrical language makes it puuurfect for poetry-related activities
Our Cat Cuddles by Gervase Phinn, illustrated by Amanda Montgomery-Higham (Child’s Play, ISBN 0859538648) is a favourite picture book of mine. I’ve had lots of fun reading it to my daughter, Daisy, at bedtime. The book is ideal to read out loud; there are great rhymes and a variety of potential voices. The visual jokes are fun too. Gervase Phinn has a good ear for rhythm and the rhymes and the story rock along, leading to a fun but obvious conclusion – and that is its strength. The illustrations by Amanda Montgomery-Higham are bright, colourful and very contemporary, and there are some good visual jokes. This really is a great book – so have fun with it and see where the ideas can take you.
Synopsis
This is the story of Lizzie, her brother Dominic, Mum and Dad and their efforts to try and get the right cat as a pet.They each discuss what type of cat they would like, then visit the pet centre to see what they can find. Eventually they choose a kitten called Cuddles and… well, you’ll have to read it for yourself to find out what happens.
Finding a voice
I firmly believe that it’s very important to find the right voice when performing a poem. Each poem has a voice that fits the mood, the rhythm and the personality. It is this voice that brings the poem to life – so let’s look at the four characters in the story and see if we can find their voices.
Dominic says:
‘I’d like a fat cat, a fierce cat
A ferocious, catch-a-rat-cat.’
Think of the type of cat he’s describing and the way he might say it. Look at the picture of the cat too – that will help. Now try the words.
Mum says:
‘I’d like a furry cat, a fluffy cat,
A friendly, sit-on-your-lap cat.’
Again, think of the type of cat she wants and how she might say those words. Don’t forget to examine the picture.
Study the illustration of Dad and read his words:
‘I’d like a sleek cat, a meek cat,
A lazy, sleep-at-your-feet cat.’
How might he say those lines?
Lizzie says:
‘I don’t mind, whatever kind
Will be all right for me.’
What tone of voice do you think she would use?
Now put them all together – individual children or small groups could perform each bit. Talk about the changes in volume, speed, tone of voice and expression, and how they affect the moods.
Rhythm
When the family goes to the animal shelter to look for a pet, there is a list of creatures. This list has a great rhythm and contains lots of rhymes and alliteration. Try and learn the list as a class. Once you are reasonably confident with the words, perform it in a few different styles: slower and rhythmic; whispering; rap with very pronounced emphasis on the beat. Divide the class into groups and give each group one of the couplets, then perform with percussion – have fun with it!
Foxes creeping
Write a list of the animals on the board: foxes, ferrets, pheasants, bats, and so on. Now add an ‘ing’ word to each of them. For example:
Foxes creeping Ferrets running Pheasants flying Bats swooping.
Try not to repeat any of the words. Now add a word that ends in ‘ly’, so you might have: Foxes creeping quietly Ferrets running quickly. You could also perform these backwards: Creeping foxes Running ferrets.
Or Quietly creeping foxes Quickly running ferrets.
Add something to the beginning or end of these phrases to describe the foxes: Sly foxes creeping quietly.
What colour are foxes? Sly brown foxes creeping quietly. Or Ten sly brown foxes creeping quietly.
Where are the foxes creeping to? Ten sly brown foxes creeping quietly to the hen house to…
Cats and dogs
In the story, the keeper lists all the cats at the centre. Can the children work out which cat is which by looking at the illustrations? Instead of listing cats, try replacing with the word ‘dogs’. For instance:
White dogs, night dogs Dancing dogs, prancing dogs…
Does this work with other animals? Which ones work best? What else do dogs do? Make a list on the board: fetch sticks; bark; shake a paw; chew a bone. Are there any rhymes for these? Fetch sticks/do tricks/picks/bricks Bark/dark/park/shark Paw/door/jaw/floor Bone/home/telephone/stone.
Try adding these into lines, such as: White dogs that fetch sticks Black dogs that chew bricks Dancing dogs shake a paw Prancing dogs on the floor…
You don’t need many for it to sound brilliant!
WIN!
For your chance to win a copy of Our Cat Cuddles visit our ‘Giveaways’ page.
A very strange pet!
The story ends up with Lizzie’s family having a very strange pet indeed. It isn’t a kitten – can the children work out what it is? What does it do to the house? Is Cuddles a good name? Or does it sound like the opposite? What strange pets could the children have? What might they do to their house? Make a list: Crocodile lives in the bathroom Bites the toilet roll Eats the shampoo and bubble bath Splashes the walls Uses all the toothpaste to clean its teeth. What name could the animal have? Think of one that either fits the character or is the opposite, so something like Snappy or Fluffy. And bingo – you have a poem!
My pet crocodile
I have a pet crocodile
His name is Fluffy.
He lives in the bathroom
And bites the toilet roll.
He eats the shampoo and bubble bath
Then blows big pink bubbles.
He splashes the walls
And uses all the toothpaste to clean his teeth.
