Matilda by Roald Dahl

Matilda

Written by Roald Dahl
Illustrated by Quentin Blake

Publisher: Puffin

Copyright date: June 1988

Number of pages: 240

Age Level: 8-12
Fantasy

Matilda is a gifted school-aged girl who grew up in a family with parents that did not care much about her. Matilda taught herself to read and used books as a way to escape the harsh reality of her home life. She attended a school with a very cruel Principal, Miss Trunchbull, whose tactics are beyond questionable. Matilda becomes very close with her teacher, Miss Honey who shows Matilda what it is like to be loved and appreciated. One day Miss Trunchbull attacks Matilda and that is when Matilda finds out she is more than just intellectually gifted; she learns she has powers. Matilda uses her powers to fight back against the Principal and her own family. 

There are many ways to create lessons based on this book. After students finish reading the book, I would create groups of 3-4 students and assign each group a different set of chapters from the book. Each group will create a script for the chapters they were assigned. The script will need to have at least three characters and a narrator. Students will use the writing process to write these scripts. They will then need to assign a specific part to each in their group. I would give them time to rehearse then they will do a read through their scripts one group at a time. The groups will go in sequential order according to which chapters they have so that by the end, they have basically retold the story.