Tidy

Product Information

Look at this video interview with the author. Think of some questions that you would like to ask her:

A hilarious book about a badger with a big cleaning problem and what happens when things go out of hand. Julia Eccleshare, the editorial expert on Lovereading4kids says, Prize-winning illustrator Emily Gravett’s distinctive illustrations are always full of wit bringing the unexpected into stories and injecting them all with delightful humour. There’s magic in Spells as a frog turns himself into a handsome prince – well, almost!, excellent advice for rabbits on how to spot the danger of wolves in Wolves, lots of useful tips on how to be braver than you feel in Little Mouse’s Big Book of Fears, a thoughtful exploration of how home often turns out to be best despite feelings of wanderlust in Meerkat Mail, a celebration of exuberant movement in Monkey and Me and a fresh and delightful look at Dogs. Lush foliage and delightfully funny characters abound in this dramatic tale of overzealous neatness that delivers its message of environmental preservation with subtlety and humour. The freshness and vibrancy of the illustrations, the endearing charm of the animal characters, and the many deft comic details throughout make this a very special book - once you enter this forest, you'll never want to leave. This book is also about the impact humans have on the world. It has no words and uses beautifully created collage to show the progress of a scene from a window showing creeping urbanisation, over a period of possibly twenty years. The attention to detail is fascinating and the message, like the other books, is about our own part in the impact on the environment and the changes we might need to make. Badger Characters in children’s literature. In Tidy, the badger, Pete initially seems to be helpfully keeping things neat and tidy in the forest. However this soon becomes obsessive behaviour that results in ecological disaster. Pete is not the reliable source of wisdom and good sense that have been attributed to badgers in other stories. It might be interesting to compare different badger characters and look at some non-fiction about the wild animals to see if there is a realistic basis for representing badgers with these characteristics.

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Can you think of a better way to show children the virtues of the forests and the dangers of losing them? I can't! The Book Bag The winner of two CILIP Kate Greenaway Medals, her skill and wit are second to none. Emily first sprang into the limelight with the ground-breaking Wolves in 2005, which has been followed by such modern classics as Meerkat Mail, Little Mouse's Big Book of Fears, Monkey and Me and Again! and the fabulous Bear and Hare series for younger readers, as well as the beautiful Tidy, Old Hat, Cyril and Pat and Meerkat Christmas.

The Window is a stunning example of collage work which may inspire creativity in illustrations of children. Look at this animated version of the story. Could you create your own animated retelling of the book? Which part of the story or illustration did your child like most? Did anything puzzle them about the story? Talk about Pete – what would your child tell someone else about him? What do they think the other animals might have said to Pete about all of his tidying up? Watch an animation of the story Can you create a book that has a ‘window’ in the front cover? Could you use this window in different creative ways?As you read the story again leave gaps so children can join in with parts, for example finishing some of the rhymes and the repeated section ‘No mud, no leaves’ etc. Talk more about the story Create some pictures of trees using finger painting. Here are some instructions from the author, Emily Gravett: After really enjoying Meerkat Mail, I decided to look at some of Emily Gravett's other work. Contrasting MM, this is a very simple story, most suitable for EYFS (but still wouldn't be out of place in a KS1 book corner). A badger named Pete loves to clean the forest - to the extent that he chops it all down and replaces it with concrete, so it can never get messy ever again. But he realises that he's gone too far - both he and other animals rely on the forest. Together, they re-build it, and from now on Pete decides that only the actual rubbish should be put in the bin.

The message is admirable and the cut-out cover enticing, but the greatest joy is in the comic expressions, hand-wrought images and witty detail. Sunday Times Why do trees have leaves? Can you find out and think of ways to share this information with others? Can you find out about different types of leaves? Make a keep our forest tidy poster to encourage (human!) visitors not to drop litter Make your own cut out ‘peep through’ scene This beautiful book, illustrated in warm tones, is full of expressive, characterful animals and tells a charming story. Emily Gravett's place in the world of children's books is already established but in Tidy she excels herself and will delight new audiences. -- Jane Sandell The Scotsman The authors of In The Forest use the pop-up elements to emphasise what has vanished and what is left. It might be possible to make individual cards with pop-up effects or a large scale one as a class. This does not use any kind of ICT technology but is amazingly effective.

Teaching Ideas and Resources:

Age 5-7 Pete is a badger who likes things to be tidy. He keeps the forest tidy even tidying away the Autumn leaves! Not content with this he decides to get rid of the trees as well and even goes as far as concreting over the forest. Now the forest is really tidy but Pete soon discovers he has no food and no way to get into his home either. Has he done the right thing? A clever story about the natural environment and what happens when it is destroyed. Are there possible perils in being just too tidy?! Lots to talk about here in this stunning picturebook. The cut outs in the cover and end papers make a lovely woodland scene. The rhyming text makes it perfect for joining in. Find the locations of forests in your local area. Could you visit some of them? Plan the journey there. Make two masks, one for the badger Pete and one of the other animals in the story (eg the fox or the rabbit). You and your child could then act out imaginary conversations between the characters. This sort of play will help children think about the story, be creative and have fun too. Write a letter Children could imagine they are one of the animals and write a letter to Pete complaining about his tidying up. Make a poster

Plus points to the cover (which has a hole so it looks like you are looking through a tunnel in the forest and see the badger cleaning things up).

I laughed myself silly reading this one. I just could see what would happen to the forest, well OK I didn't totally expect that at the end, but I was close. :P Poor animals, I wonder why they didn't try harder to stop the badger. It was quite fun how it started with just cleaning here and there and then escalated to that. Carry out some role-play activities based on the book, e.g. interview the other forest animals to ask them what they think about Pete’s actions. Find out more about badgers. Where do they live? What do they eat? Can you write a report about them?