Activities on Coraline by Neil Gaiman
This helpful and focused resource is a useful teaching and learning tool, guiding students through the novel of 'Coraline' by Neil Gaiman. The activities are varied and explore key events, plot development, character construction and thematic concerns.
Easily adaptable for the classroom and for individual, pair or group work, each activity enables students to develop a clear understanding of the text and how the character of Coraline progresses through the narrative.
Included are a range of imaginative tasks that promote a lateral approach to textual analysis to prepare students for the rigours of learning in later years.
A sample extract from the resource:
Read the introduction and discuss the following ideas.
Can you remember a house you used to live in or visited as a child? Describe it to your classmate. How can houses form an important part of our childhood?
Chapter 5
- In groups, brainstorm the elements of fantasy fiction that you have seen in the novel so far. What effects do these elements create? Come up with 3 reasons using evidence to support your ideas.
- Now consider Coraline’s story. What do you know about her so far? Write down all of the information you know at this point in the text.
In pairs or groups, discuss how you could develop Coraline’s tale to include all the story elements (orientation, complication, climax, resolution). Try to develop aspects of fantasy in the story. If you like, you could sketch it out as a ‘story mountain.’ Present your ideas to the class.
