Sharing the story
* Elaborate on the story by describing in greater detail each new home that the fish provides for the man and his wife.
* Ask the children to imagine the different features of the houses. These will probably reflect their (and their families') ideas of comfort and wealth, and may well be contemporary, for example, central heating, fitted kitchen and a swimming pool!
* Ask them to tell you about their dream homes. Tell them about yours. Write down their ideas and mount them along with drawings and photographs from interior design magazines. Ask other adults to contribute.
* Borrow a Big Mouth Billy Bass (a singing fish!) for your setting. Toys such as these that respond to sound can be a great way to encourage withdrawn children to use their voice.
For more information
* The story is a very old one, so try to find different versions of it, to share and discuss with the children.
* Share magic fish stories and legends from other countries and cultures.
* Read The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister (North-South Books, Pounds 6.99).
* Find out about any historic houses or castles in your area and arrange a visit.
* Check out local museums for displays on domestic life. Museums of childhood will have doll's houses.
* Use reference books to find out about freshwater and sea fish.
* Visit a fishmonger's or a fish market.
Creative work
* Use junk modelling and collage to create 3D illustrations for the story.
* Find books on castles that the children can refer to and create a castle in the role play area or outdoors.
* Paint 'fishy' pictures and make 'fishy' collages. Experiment with watercolours. Make splash paintings, dropping water on to finished paintings to create a 'watery' effect or try covering paintings with coloured cellophane.
Fishing games
* Play the usual magnetic fishing game but with a difference by adding words or letters to cards or pictures of fish for the children to read or match.
* If using numbers, ask the children to find, for example, a number that is more than three or a number that is between seven and nine.
* If using letters, ask the children to find, for example, a letter that is in your name or a letter that starts a given word.
* Develop the ideas to suit the learning intentions that you want to consolidate, and use the game as a regular way of reinforcing new information. Fishing with a magnet can be a powerful motivation to practise tasks!
* Add numbers, letters or words to the backs of Pokemon (or other desirable) cards and ask them to locate and then fish for a given word or number. The reward is to find out which card you have 'won'.
Music
* Sing the rhyme '1,2,3,4,5, once I caught a fish alive'.
* Listen to 'The Trout' by Sibelius or recordings of whale and dolphin sounds, and use them as a stimulus for dance or artwork, or simply while the children are playing or resting.
Drama
* Use the story as a starting point for drama. As well as dramatising the whole story, there are aspects that lend themselves to individual focus.
* Explore the act of fishing: tying the bait, throwing the line, sitting and contemplating while waiting for a bite, the line pulling back and forth, until the fish is landed.
* Explore how our feelings affect the way we walk, for example, the man trudging wearily to the river, returning happily with a sprightly step.
The moral of the story
* Although we as adults may have a firm idea of the story's message, it is worth considering that most stories can work on many different levels.
* Talk to the children about what we mean when we talk about 'the message' of a story and how it may mean different things to different people.
* Ask them to tell you what they think the message is. Respond positively to each suggestion, and if appropriate, ask them to elaborate on their reasons.
* Tell them what you consider to be the moral of the story.
Wish list
* Make your own 'wish fish' for the setting.
* Ask the children what they would wish for if they were to meet a magic fish.
* Provide slips of paper and pens. Scribe for the children or encourage them to draw or write their wishes and thoughts. Mount them or hide them in a secret wish box - who knows, they might come true!
