A family of beavers has been relocated to London. It’s a historic return of the animals to the city for the first time in 400 years.
This resources pack includes an article from First News, along with a sheet of activities designed to get children thinking, talking and writing about what the story means to them.
Oracy
London hasn’t had wild beavers for centuries. Is it right that we should be reintroducing them now? Is it fair to move wild animals to a completely new location? Why should these animals be uprooted just to please us? Or do you think that it’s an inspirational project? Isn’t it an interesting way to help improve London’s environment? Shouldn’t we be doing more to reintroduce animals to places from which human activity drove them away long ago? What do you think?
Writing skills
Using a narrative structure, write a brief dialogue between Mr and Mrs McBeaver as they go sightseeing around London. What would they make of a big city? Which parts of it do you think they would like, if any? Have some fun with it but remember to use accurate speech punctuation.
Or
‘The Ealing Beavers’ has a nice ring to it. (The way that both ‘Ealing’ and ‘Beavers’ have the same ‘ea’ sound is called assonance.) Can you think of another five or ten pairings of place names and animals that either rhyme or have assonance?
Investigate
Research animals that have become extinct in the British Isles over the last 2,000 years. How many can you name? As an extra challenge, see if you can give a rough date for when they were last seen here.
What is First News?
Launched in May 2006, First News is the most trusted weekly newspaper for young audiences, covering global headlines and empowering children with an understanding of the world in which they are growing up.
To find out more about how First News could help your school unlock the power of news-based learning, through high quality, weekly resources alongside the print and digital newspaper, visit the First News Education website.