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From Possum magic by Mem Fox and Julie Vivas
Text copyright © Mem Fox, 1983
Illustrations copyright © Julie Vivas, 1983
First published by Omnibus Books, a division of Scholastic Australia Pty Ltd, 1983
Reproduced by permission of Scholastic Australia Pty Ltd
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'Possum magic became and remains the best known picture book in Australia and the best selling picture book ever in this country.’ (Mem Fox, cited 22.3.04)
March 31st 2004 marked the 21st birthday of the publication of Possum magic. Mem Fox and Julie Vivas worked together to tell this story.
Joining the rap
Book rap support materials
Rap points
Additional resources
Credits
This book rap on Possum magic by Mem Fox and Julie Vivas will be available during Term 2, 2004.
This book rap is suitable for Stage 1 (Years 1 and 2).
| Dates: (approx)
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| *Rap live for viewing and subscribing |
5 April 2004 |
| *Introductions from |
3 May 2004 |
| *Rap point 1 |
10 May 2004 |
| *Rap point 2 |
17 May 2004 |
| *Rap point 3 |
24 May 2004 |
| *Rap wrap up |
31 May 2004 |
Coordinators: Mandy Kirk (Thomas Acres Public School, Rosemeadow) and Jenny Scheffers (Marayong Public School, Blacktown).
Joining the rap
From 5 April 2004, you can view the support material for this rap and prepare to participate by entering your email address in the boxes below and clicking the ‘Submit’ buttons. Please ensure you have registered the email addresses before doing so. Note that the rap does not start till the week of 3 May 2004.
Teacher email will not be archived to protect privacy. The teacher rap runs concurrently with the book rap to provide additional support for teachers, and the opportunity to discuss issues which may arise during the rap.
You will receive confirmation emails for your Class group and the Teacher support listserv. Please save these messages as they contain important email addresses, and simply follow the instructions these contain when posting messages once the rap starts.
Archives of the class email discussion
Gallery of student work
Book rap support materials
Introductory activities
Rap points
Program and planning Stage 1
Rap sheets (for use with Rap points)
Additional resources
Rap maps
Rap lingo
Implementing a rap (Book rap FAQs)
Email – instruction sheet for students
Rap reflection sheet
Parent information letter
Rap points
These discussion questions guide the book rap. The question for the week is posted to the rap at the beginning of that week by the coordinators. Class groups post their answers and can respond via the rap to other school's replies during the relevant week for that rap point.
Rap point 1
Rap point 2
Rap point 3
Rap point 1 (For related class activities see Program and planning)
Term 2, Week 3: week beginning 10 May 2004
Grandma Poss made bush magic.
She made wombats blue
and kookaburras pink.
She made dingos smile
and emus shrink.
a) What other bush magic do you think Grandma Poss could perform? Create a verse that describes Grandma Poss’ magical powers. Use Mem Fox’s writing style to help you. For example:
She made goannas fly
and bilbies frown.
She made wallabies swim
and cockatoos brown.
But the best magic of all was the magic that made Hush INVISIBLE.
What adventures Hush had!
b) Invent two or three other enjoyable adventures for Hush whilst she was invisible. For example:
Because she couldn’t be seen she could tickle old wombat.
Post a class response to the rap. Your class might wish to respond to the comments from other rappers via the rap.
Rap point 2 (For related class activities see Program and planning)
Term 2, Week 4: week beginning 17 May 2004
It was there in the far north of Australia,
that they found a vegemite sandwich.
Grandma Poss crossed her claws and crossed her feet.
Hush breathed deeply and began to eat.
“A tail! A tail!” shouted both possums at once.
For there it was. A brand new, visible tail.
a) Write your own version of what would happen if Grandma Poss and Hush visited your town. Tell us about your town’s location, a popular food, and how Grandma Poss and Hush would react when Hush tasted your food. What part of Hush’s body, if any, might reappear?
b) What would Grandma Poss and Hush do next? Give us your ideas about where they would go and what might happen.
Post your description to the rap. Include your reasons for choosing this particular character. Your class might wish to respond to comments from other rappers via the rap.
Rap point 3 (For related class activities see Program and planning)
Term 2, Week 5: week beginning 24 May 2004
a) What is your favourite page in the story? Why?
b) If you were to be invited to the birthday celebration of Possum magic, what would be your present to Mem Fox and/or Julie Vivas? Give reasons.
Post your response to the rap. Your class might wish to respond to the comments from other rappers via the rap.
Rap sheets
Rap sheet 1 (for Rap point 1)
Rap sheet 2 (for Rap point 1)
Rap sheet 3 (for Rap point 2)
Rap sheet 4 (for Rap point 2)
Rap sheet 5 (for Rap point 2)
Rap sheet 6 (for Rap point 3)
Rap maps
Find examples of maps and tally sheets. Students may use these to identify and locate schools participating in the book rap. Use these or create your own based on ideas from these examples.
Rap lingo
| Book rap: |
an online discussion about a book |
| Rappers: |
the people involved in the book rap |
| Rap map: |
a map marking other rappers’ locations |
| Rap point: |
a topic, issue or event from the book to discuss |
| Rap record: |
print out of messages responded to |
| Rap reflections: |
sheets for rappers to reflect on their experiences and skills |
| Rap rep: |
the person typing the responses |
| Rap reporters: |
the people relaying rap news to others |
| Rap rules: |
guidelines of a book rap discussion |
| Rap wrap up: |
final message about a book rap |
Rap reflection sheets
Ready to rap (for rappers to reflect on prior learning and expectations)
Rap reflection 1 (for rappers to reflect on the experiences and skills they have gained)
Rap reflection 2 (for rappers to reflect on the experiences and skills they have gained)
Credits
Thank you to Mandy Kirk ( Thomas Acres Public School), and Jenny Scheffers ( Marayong Public School), for developing the programming and support material, and to Rhonda Jenkins, English K-6 Consultant.
Additional resources provided by the School Libraries and Information Literacy unit.
This rap is a joint project of the School Libraries and Information Literacy and English Units, Curriculum K-12 Directorate. |
