Rosie’s Walk by Pat Hutchins

Rosie’s Walk by Pat Hutchins can, at first glance, seem to be a rather simple story but if you spend some time with this story it reveals a great plot, plenty of humour, beautiful illustrations and interesting talking points. It is the story of Rosie the hen and her walk at the farm. She is oblivious to the danger and chaos behind her which always reminds me of the cartoons with The Road Runner and Wile E. Cayote or Sylvester and Tweety Pie.

Rosie goes for a walk.

 

The moment she leaves the safety of the chicken coop a fox appears, ears pricked, eyes wide and tongue hanging out. He looks hungry.

Rosie wanders across the yard and the fox launches into the air…

Only to land on a rake that flips and hits him square on the nose!

Rosie then walks around the pond, over the haycock (haystack), past the mill and through the fence. Each time the fox’s attempts to capture Rosie are thwarted and she remains oblivious. Even when the beehives begin to topple above her, she just keeps on walking.

The bees see off the fox, in a raging swarm over the hills.

Rosie steps back into the safety of her chicken coop just in time for dinner, still none the wiser to the danger and disasters behind her.

The story is great to read to children as they quickly pick up the order and begin to ‘read’ with you. It is also fantastic for children beginning to read independently as the text is big, bold and supported by the gorgeous, vibrant and stylistic illustrations. Rosie’s Walk is also the perfect book for introducing or reinforcing prepositions as Rosie walks across the yard, around the pond, over the haycock, past the mill, through the fence and under the beehives.

Talk about

Rosie’s Walk by Pat Hutchins is a book you want to spend time with. The colours draw you in and the limited, vibrant palette works brilliantly. You can enjoy the book as a witty tale but you could use the story as the starting point for creating your own Rosie’s Walk obstacle course in the garden or using Lego so that you can act out the story, or even the beginning of a discussion about being aware of your own surroundings.

Here are some ideas or questions that you might want to use to start a discussion in your family. You know your family and which questions they are ready to tackle now and which can be left for another day:

1. Where does Rosie go for her walk?
2. Who follows Rosie on her walk?
3. Why do you think the fox is following Rosie?
4. How would the story change if Rosie turned around and saw the fox?
5. When you go for a walk do you take time to really notice what is around you?
6. What do you think about when you go for a walk?
7. Do you think that Rosie would have been safer if she had gone for a walk with friends or family, instead of going for a walk on her own?
8. Are you allowed to go out for a walk on your own?
9. If not, why not?
10. If you could go for a walk anywhere, where would you like to go? Who would you like to go with?

Crafts and activities for kids

There are lots of opportunities for discussion, play and crafts inspired by Rosie’s Walk by Pat Hutchins.

Have a look at the Pinterest Board full of crafts and activities for kids…

Follow Read and Create’s board Rosie’s Walk by Pat Hutchins on Pinterest.

You can also take a look at these activities to accompany reading the book:

1. Read and Create Rosie’s Walk Tessellation Activity
2. A Happy Wanderer Rosie’s Walk Obstacle Course
3. The Fairy and the Frog Chick Numeracy Games
4. Red Ted Art Juggling Chickens
5. Red Ted Art Chicken Easter Baskets
6. Domestic Goddesque Papier-mâché Hen

To accompany your reading of the story here is a fantastic video of Rosie’s Walk by Pat Hutchins.

 

What have you been reading this week?