Pistes d'exploration

List the places you see Nat sleeping. Where else might you find a cat curled up?

Discuss the meaning of the word nocturnal. Can you think of any animals, other than cats, that are nocturnal?

Discuss why the kitten isn’t sleeping. Why does he want to wake Nat? What else could the kitten do to wake him? Finish the sentence: If I were a cat I would . . . .

As a class, write a rhyming poem or story about the kitten and the things he likes to do.

Generate a list of rhyming words you hear in the story. Which other words could rhyme with them?

Practise naming the places where Nat roams in the house. 

Identify the prepositions and location words from the text. Add this vocabulary to a class anchor chart or personal word bank.

Bring in funny or unusual pictures of sleeping cats (your own if you have one). Add short, rhythmic captions in the style of the story. In small groups, present your sentences in a rap style, ending with “Nat the cat can sleep like that.” 

The Napping House, Little Hoot

Mots-clés

Picture book , animal behaviour , cats , recurrent patterns , sleep , stories in rhyme

Commentaire descriptif

Anyone who’s loved a cat will enjoy this book that portrays the many ways Nat the cat enjoys his nap. The rhyming language is comical, e.g. “under blankets, on a stair, upside-down on someone’s chair” and lyrical “in a basket safe and snug, or where sunbeams warm the rug.” Illustrations in bright colour-pencil effects show two pet cats, sleepy Nat and a frisky kitten, as they enjoy their day in different ways. Nat snoozes in a cooking pot, while his companion steps on the pages of an open cookbook. Nat dozes on a bathroom window ledge, while the kitten plays pirates in the tub. When night falls, spreads dim to purple-blue backgrounds and nocturnal Nat comes to life: “When the wind is WHOOSHH and SHUSHHWhen the darkness murmurs, HUSH!” Kitty-romps through darkened rooms finish with a play fight between the two friends: “Nat the cat can’t ever… ever… ever… sleep through that!” The final image shows the dawn, when an exhausted kitten finally sleeps.