Who was Roald Dahl?

Objective & content

This writing sheet teaches pupils to write a short biography (He was born on... in..., When he was nine..., At thirteen..., He became..., In 1940..., His first book came out in..., He wrote many famous books, like..., He died in..., but children still...). Pupils read a page about Roald Dahl for the class wall, take its phrases and write the life of another person. By the end, they can write a biography of 100 to 120 words in the past simple, with dates.

Pedagogical guide

Page 1 has the page about Roald Dahl (1916 to 1990), with a photo of a chocolate bar. He was born in Cardiff to Norwegian parents; at thirteen he went to Repton, where a chocolate company sent new bars for the boys to test, which later gave him the idea for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. He worked for an oil company in Africa, became a pilot in the Second World War and was badly hurt when his plane crashed in the desert in 1940. His first children's book, The Gremlins, came out in 1943, followed by Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The BFG and Matilda; schools celebrate Roald Dahl Day every 13th September. Pupils answer six questions with three options each, then read the useful phrases, set out in the order of a biography (birth, childhood, work, important years, famous for, end). Page 2 starts with four lines about Amelia Earhart to complete with words from a box. Then pupils write the life of Marie Curie, Amelia Earhart, Jesse Owens or Charles Dickens (each card gives the dates and key facts, with a photo of an object, not a face) or of someone they admire who is no longer alive, and tick the checklist. The answer key gives a model biography of Marie Curie. All the facts have been checked.

Suggested procedure

1. (5 min) Ask "Do you know any books by Roald Dahl?" and show the photo: "What's the link with chocolate?"
2. (10 min) Read the text aloud; pupils answer the questions.
3. (5 min) Read the useful phrases with the class; pupils find the dates in the text.
4. (5 min) Page 2: pupils complete the lines about Amelia Earhart.
5. (20 min) Pupils choose a life, write the biography and tick the checklist.
6. (5 min) Pupils read one fact; the class guesses whose life it is.

Adaptations

[S] Pupils turn each line of a card into a sentence, in the order of the phrases box.

[A] Pupils add why the person is still remembered today.

Materials & prerequisites

One copy of pages 1 and 2 per pupil. Page 3 is the answer key, the model biography and the teacher notes: keep it. Pupils need the past simple of regular and irregular verbs, was born and dates with in and on. To take it further, the class makes a wall of famous lives, with a timeline.