1,2,3 Storytelling
Look at the front cover together. Ask your child to tell you what they can see and what is happening. Take note of their questions / comments. Read the story to your child. Ask your child to tell you about Mr Gumpy.
Storytelling 1
Read the whole story. It is likely that your child will want to tell you what is happening and will talk about the pictures.
Storytelling 2
Read the story and ask your child about each page and the illustrations, for example, “How many animals are on the boat now? What is it like on the boat? What do you think will happen next?”
Storytelling 3
Ask your child to share the story with you. They tell you the story using the pictures on each page.
Watch Emma read Mr Gumpy’s Outing here
Activities
Talk
Look at the picture of Mr Gumpy’s house. Ask: What can you see? Encourage your child to look at all the details in the picture and name them using the sentence structure: “I can see a …..”
Look at Mr Gumpy. Ask: what kind of person is he? Is he friendly/kind? What does he like to do? How do you know? Encourage your child to notice his watering can, his boat, his garden.
After each animal gets on the boat, ask: What does Mr Gumpy tell the animal not to do? Discuss the meaning of the word, for example: chase, tease, squabble.
Look together at the page where the boat tips. Ask: Why does it tip? How does Mr Gumpy feel now?
Look at the picture of the animals having tea. Ask: What can you see? Encourage your child to look at all the details in the picture and name them using the sentence structure: “I can see a …..”
Do you think Mr Gumpy had a good day or a bad day? Why? Encourage your child to explain their answer using ‘because.’
Play
Draw all the animals onto pieces of paper, or print and use our images. Lay them out and ask your child to put them in the order that we meet them in the story. Ask your child to close their eyes and then take one away. When they open their eyes, can they work out which animal is missing?
Make a large boat from a cardboard box and role play the story. Can your child be Mr Gumpy and remember what to say as each animal gets on the boat?
Make
Make a boat from reclaimed materials such as an egg box or a shoe box. Float the boat in the sink or the bath.
If you have them, add plastic animal toys to the boat. How many can we add before the boat sinks? Ask your child to make a prediction and then count each animal as it gets on.
Other books to read and watch at home
Bunnies in a Boat by Phillip Ardagh
A River by Marc Martin
The River by Tom Percival
What the Ladybird Heard by Julia Donaldson
A Squash and a Squeeze by Julia Donaldson
Oi Get Off Our Train! by John Burningham
Mr Gumpy’s Motor Car by John Burningham
Songs
Mr Gumpy had a boat
To the tune of Old Macdonald had a farm
Mr Gumpy had a boat
E-i-e-i-o
And on that boat he had a dog
E-i-e-i-o
With a woof, woof, here
And a woof, woof, there
Here a woof, there a woof
Everywhere a woof, woof
Mr Gumpy had a boat
E-i-e-i-o
Repeat with all the animals from the story.
Float, float, float the boat
To the tune of Row, Row, row the boat
Float, float, float the boat
(move arms in rowing motion)
Down the river wide
(sway side to side as if floating)
All the animals jump aboard
(Pretend to hop like a rabbit etc.)
What a bumpy ride!
(Wobble side to side like boat is tipping)
Mr Gumpy’s Boat
To the tune of The wheels on the bus
Mr. Gumpy’s boat goes glide, glide, glide
Glide, glide, glide, glide, glide, glide
Mr. Gumpy’s boat goes glide, glide, glide
All down the river!
The children in the boat go squabble, squabble,
squabble
The rabbit on the boat goes hop, hop, hop
The cat on the boat goes chase, chase, chase
The dog on the boat goes tease, tease, tease
The pig on the boat mucks about
The sheep on the boat go bleat, bleat, bleat
The chickens on the boat go flap, flap, flap
The calf on the boat goes trample, trample, trample
The goat on the boat goes kick, kick, kick
Final Verse:
The boat in the river goes tip, tip, tip
Tip, tip, tip, tip, tip, tip
The boat in the river goes tip, tip, tip
And they all fall in! SPLASH!
Mr Gumpy’s Outing is written and illustrated by John Burnigham, and published by Red Fox.