English
3. James and the Giant Peach
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By Roald Dahl
Puffin 1995 ISBN 0 14 037156 7 Page 36

 

Not far away, in the middle of the garden, he could see the giant peach towering over everything else. Surely it was even bigger tonight than ever before? And what a dazzling sight it was! The moonlight was shining and glinting on its great curving sides, turning them to crystal and silver. It looked like a tremendous silver ball lying there in the grass, silent, mysterious, and wonderful.

......Almost without knowing what he was doing, as though drawn by some powerful magnet, James Henry Trotter started walking towards the giant peach.......He put out a hand and touched it gently with the tip of one finger. It felt soft and warm and slightly furry, like the skin of a baby mouse.

......there was a hole in the side of the peach......The tunnel was damp and murky, and all around him was the curious bittersweet smell of fresh peach. The floor was soggy under his knees, the walls were wet and sticky, and the peach juice was dripping from the ceiling. James opened his mouth and caught some of it on his tongue. It tasted delicious.

 

Questions and activities

(1) Where does the boy find the peach?

 

(2) What is the boy's name?

 


(3) What words tell us that the boy has seen the peach before?

 

(4) What animal does the writer say that the peach feels like?

 


(5) What words or phrases does the writer use to tell us about;
a. the size of the peach?

 

b. the smell of the peach?

 

c. the taste of the peach?

 

(6) Write a list of adjectives that can be used to describe the peach.

 

 

(7) Draw one of the scenes described in the passage

 


(8) Creative writing
Imagine that you discover a different sort of giant fruit or vegetable. Describe its touch, taste and smell. Describe what happens as you crawl inside it.



 


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