For grown-ups sharing stories with children aged 4–8. Free for families, classrooms and libraries, with no sign-up.
Make a small space to read together.
Try this with one child, a family, a classroom pair or a small library group. Allow around 10–15 minutes, or stop sooner when the moment feels finished. You need an opening excerpt, scrap paper and pencils. No one needs to own the book, write independently or share a personal experience.
A grown-up reads and makes room for turns. Before you begin, agree that anyone may speak, point, draw, listen or pass. A quiet answer counts too. In a larger group, try the drawing in pairs so nobody has to speak in front of everyone.
1. Listen to one beginning.
Read the opening of The Bigger Table. Willowwick’s green needs a plan: Rosie suggests a goal, Maisie a garden with a bench, and Toby somewhere for snacks. Read the excerpt once without questions. If your readers want another look, return to the words or picture together.
Try asking: “What did you hear someone hoping for?”
2. Notice before you decide.
Invite each person to point to one detail in the picture or repeat a word they remember. Someone else may notice the same thing. There is no need to find a detail nobody has seen. Offer your own small observation if the group would like a beginning.
Try asking: “What would you want to ask Rosie, Maisie or Toby about their idea?” You can wonder without knowing the answer or the rest of the story.
3. Draw a green with room to wonder.
Draw a large empty shape on paper: this is an imaginary village green. Each person can add one idea, or describe it for a grown-up to draw. You might use one of the characters’ ideas or make up something else. This is your group’s invention, not a drawing of what happens later in the book.
Look at two ideas together. “What could help these share the space?” Perhaps a path, a quieter corner, different times to play or a question for someone else. You do not have to fit everything in or agree on a finished plan. Leave an empty patch for a thought you have not had yet.
An idea I heard…
An idea I would add…
A question we still have…
4. Finish with one thing to keep.
Invite everyone to choose a word, drawing or question they would like to remember. Passing is fine. Thank the group for listening, then decide together whether to read another beginning, keep drawing or put the paper away. There is no winning plan and no work to submit.
Make it fit your readers.
- A simple route for ages 4–5: choose one picture detail and one thing to draw. A grown-up can repeat a child’s words or make the marks they ask for. The first two steps can be a complete activity.
- An extra possibility for ages 6–8: give the drawing a title, add a label, or invent one question each character might ask. Writing is optional at every age.
- For any age: use toys to stand for the ideas, describe a detail aloud, or let a partner share an idea with permission. Follow the reader, not the age suggestion.
Choose another beginning next time.
Read the breakfast opening of Everyone Must Agree Day and notice the different favourites at the table. Or try Toby’s first hop in The Race Without a Finish and wonder what he might try next. Our story theme chooser can help you find another conversation.
For a shorter pause, choose one conversation starter. For an invented adventure, make a little story. Keep drawings with your family or group; this website asks for no names, photographs or uploads.
A free Willowwick website resource. Print and use without resale, keeping this credit. These prompts are separate from the books.
willowwickbooks.com