Pistes d'exploration

Discuss the characteristics of a fable and identify these elements in the book. What is the moral of this story? 

In teams, debate the merits of living as a country mouse versus as a city mouse. Organize your arguments and information using a Venn diagram. Which would you prefer to be?

In pairs, discuss the idea of trading places or lives with someone. Who would you choose? Describe what you think your life might be like after the trade.

Examine the illustrations. What do you notice about the homes and environments in which the two mice live? Share your observations with a peer.

Discuss the meaning of the idiom There’s no place like home. Identify and then illustrate what you like about your own home.

Discuss the similarities of and differences between life in the city and life in the country.

In small groups, look through the pictures and text to identify what objects are used in the two mouse houses. Use a Venn diagram to collect your information. 

Build a mouse house out of reused/recycled materials. Decide if you prefer a town or country house. Write a description for your house and present it at The Mouse House Fair.

Storybook Homes, Ten Old Men and a Mouse, What's on My Farm?

Mots-clés

Folklore , city and country life , comparisons , envy , fables , mice , story within a story

Commentaire descriptif

This sophisticated, somewhat lengthy grass-is-greener fable is a great book for reading aloud and for confident readers. Rich and intricate language effectively portrays the two couples and their lifestyles, even as they dream of something better: “nothing will prepare you for the taste of wild blackberries” says the town-husband. “They say the smell of cheese makes your whiskers tingle” says the country-wife. Painted illustrations are astoundingly detailed. Country fern fronds are lovingly rendered. Town tapestries clearly show the grain of the fabric. Children may enjoy identifying the real-life objects that create borders for the main and sidebar images. In one spread, the country-husband falls from a sprung mousetrap; sidebar images show the impending threat of a lolling cat. In another, forest predators loom in the sidebars, as the town-couple runs to their new adopted stump-house. Children may not be surprised when the story finishes with the couples passing on the road—running back home in opposite directions. In a lovely twist, their pursuers (the cat and the owl) crash into each other, which sparks an idea: “how would you like to trade places with me?”