Kenneth Grahame
Episode of the series British Children Authors
- Illustrated slideshow
- Comprehension quiz (45 questions)
- Cultural notes
Extract · 30 sThe episode
The bank clerk who made Mr Toad. Kenneth Grahame worked in a bank for thirty years. He told his son stories about a rat, a mole, a badger and a very loud toad, and they became a famous book.
Episode worksheets (2)
- Student sheet In your teacher account
- Teacher sheet In your teacher account
Teaching guide
Objective & content
This documentary episode presents Kenneth Grahame, born in Edinburgh in 1859, who worked at the Bank of England and wrote The Wind in the Willows for his small son Alistair. The script describes his childhood by the River Thames, his job as Secretary of the bank, and the four main characters of the book: Mole, Ratty (a water vole), Mr Toad and Badger. Learners meet the past simple (with the present simple in the opening and closing), animal and countryside vocabulary, and words such as "clerk", "bank", "publisher" and "critic". The main skill is listening to a life story told in order. The script says: "He wrote this book for one child." The target level is CEFR A1-.
Materials & prerequisites
- A student sheet and a teacher sheet, each as a PDF and an HTML file, in the episode's printables.
- Learners should know the present simple and the verb "to be" in the past (was, were); regular past simple endings are met in the episode itself.
Curriculum alignment
The episode is tagged with the cycle 3 axis "child and imagination" (6e) and the axis "imagination, tales and legends". It targets CEFR A1-.
Possible adaptations
- Lower levels: Offer segmented listening and additional visual aids.
- Advanced levels: Encourage an oral summary and a debate in English on the theme.
- Large groups: Organise group work with differentiated roles.
🔒 Restricted content
This resource requires a subscription to be viewed.
Unlock the resourceIncluded in the subscription