The Storm Whale

 The Storm Whale, by Benji Davies, tells the story of a boy called Noi who lives by the sea with his father. After a storm, Noi find a baby whale stranded on the beach. 

Noi has to use his Creativity to make a plan to help the whale. In the end, he is able to help it to return to the ocean, with a little help from his Dad.

Like all good picture books, The Storm Whale can be read and enjoyed many times over. With each reading, new details of the story become clear. We have been taking time each morning to read and explore The Storm Whale. This allows us to gain a deep understanding of the story that will enrich our own writing. It also provides great opportunities for us to practise retelling stories and sharing our ideas.

Children in Autahi are learning to identify who the characters are in the stories they read, and also the setting (where the story is happening). The Storm Whale, like many stories, has a problem at the heart of it. Noi has to be resourceful and make plan to solve it. 

The ending of the story caused lots of discussion as it is left a bit open. Noi hopes to see his friend again. Does he? Who are the whales we see in the ocean on the last page of the book. It was interesting to hear different opinions about this and to talk about why there doesn't always have to be one answer.

The text in really great picture books is a bit like poetry: there are very few words so each one is chosen with great care. There is often interesting vocabulary to learn about. We discussed how the word 'raged' connects with the word 'rage'. Autahi students were able to make the connection between the emotion and the stormy weather in the story. As one child put it, "Tāwhirimātea is angry!"

As we got to know the characters in the story better, we were also able to choose some adjectives to describe them. Which words fitted Noi and which suited the whale better?

This activity led us to the moving discovery that Noi and the Whale have a lot in common. Both are young and a bit lonely. Their encounter helps both of them, in different ways, to reconnect with their families.

Great picture books are also very inspiring for our own writing. Living by the sea, we have all had the experience of finding interesting things on the beach - and can also imagine some pretty wild stories, too.

Next week, we will be taking a deep dive into another awesome picture book. Ask your child about it!