Countdown: Go outside to your garden or a nearby outside space. Count down from ten, taking a step for each number. When you get to zero, say “blast off!” and run to an agreed point. You could try jumping or hopping for each number. Whatever Next! is a children’s picture book by Jill Murphy. You can watch the National Literacy Trust reading the story below! Four ways to explore the story with your child Answer mum’s question… ‘Whatever Next?’ by writing a story that describes a new adventure for Baby Bear.

Copy: Make a list of what you would take to the moon. The list could include food, toys and special items. This could prompt a discussion about precious things and people. Songs and rhymes: Sing these rhymes about space and space travel: Zoom, Zoom, Zoom, Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star, and Hey Diddle Diddle. Find out about the history of space flight and the different astronauts who have landed on the moon. Use WordArt (or a paint program) to create eye-catching examples of words linked to onomatopoeia (like ‘Whoosh’ and ‘BUMP’).Could you act out the story with some friends? Which characters will you need to have? Will you use any props? Indoor picnic: Pretend you are the characters in the story. Collect items you might need for a trip to the moon, including a blanket and food for a picnic. Lay out a picnic inside and enjoy it together. Look at the use of punctuation in the story. How many question marks, exclamation marks, commas, speech marks and full stops can you find? Can you explain why the author has used each one?

Make a shopping list that includes items you might need for a picnic on the moon. How much would these things cost? How much would they cost altogether? Baby Bear and Owl fly past millions of stars. How many is a million? Can you write a million in digits?Watch this video which shows preparations for a play version of ‘Whatever Next’. Could you put on your own performance of the story? Space pictures: Use tinfoil and paint to make some shiny space pictures. You could paint a moon or some stars.

The story starts with a question. Can you think of other questions? How do we show that a sentence is a question? What words are usually used to start questions? Write a diary entry from the point of view of Baby Bear. What happened to him? How did he feel about it?

There is an open envelope above the Bears’ fireplace. Could you write the letter that might have been inside it? Draw a picture from the point of view of one of the passengers on the plane who sees Baby Bear and Owl flying up to the moon.