Theme: Mythical CreaturesIt is vital for teachers to understand the Ziptales 10 stage Reading Scheme, which governs how reading groups can be formed in a way which matches children’s abilities to the appropriate texts. To check on this essential resource - click here.
The 10 Zip Stages cover all levels of reading ability, from Foundation/Prep/Kindergarten through to Year 6. This scheme underpins the whole Themes module.
| Focus Stories | Comprehension | Conventions | Writing | Speaking & Listening | Extension |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Zip Stage 1 I Wish (Short Vowels – Easy Readers) |
Worksheet #1: Find the Missing Words |
Worksheet #2: Adding ‘ing’ |
Write a sentence about the wish in the story you liked the best. | Listen to the story of Jack and the Beanstalk. Which animal from I Wish is in this fairy tale? | Paint the magic hen and a golden egg with treasure inside. |
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Zip Stage 1 Have You Ever? (Consonant Blends – Easy Readers) |
Classify the creatures in the story as ‘real’ or ‘not real’. |
Worksheet #1: Sorting Words |
Worksheet #2: Finish the Sentences |
Talk to a partner about some fun things you could do if you met a friendly monster. | Use a paper plate to make a scary monster mask. |
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Zip Stage 2 The Lonely Dragon (Long Vowels – Easy Readers) |
Worksheet #1: Answering Questions |
Sort words from the story under the headings ‘a-e’, ‘i-e’ and ‘o-e’. |
Worksheet #2: Write a Narrative |
Read the story aloud as Reader’s Theatre. | Create the dragon from the story using egg cartons. |
|
Zip Stage 3 Wendy and the Fairy (Storytime) |
Multiple Choice Questions Worksheet & Worksheet #2. | Study words with ‘y’ ending making long ‘e’ sound e.g. Wendy, fairy, party. | Imagine you found a fairy in your garden. Write a story about it. |
Co-operative Cloze: Work together to complete Worksheet #1. |
Make fairy puppets using clothes pegs or icy pole sticks. |
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Zip Stage 3 Wendy and the Dragon (Storytime) |
Multiple Choice Questions Worksheet & Worksheet #2 | Make a word family for –ight words. | Write five facts about a real animal with ‘dragon’ in its name e.g. dragonfly. |
Co-operative Cloze: Work together to complete Worksheet #1 |
Make the dragon egg using balloons and papier mache. |
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Zip Stage 3 Wendy and the Genie (Storytime) |
Multiple Choice Questions Worksheet & Worksheet #2. | List soft ‘g’ (genie, magic) and hard ‘g’ words (big, great). | Write about three wishes you would make stating reasons for each. |
Co-operative Cloze: Work together to complete Worksheet #1. |
Decorate a jar (glass paint, glitter, gems) to make a genie lamp. |
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Zip Stage 3 The Billy Goats Gruff (Storytime) |
Multiple Choice Questions Worksheet & Worksheet #2 |
Worksheet #1: Word Building |
Worksheet #3: What happened to the troll? |
Use the script to perform the story to an audience. |
Worksheet #4: Let’s Create |
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Zip Stage 3 The Lonely Giant (Imaginary Worlds – Junior Readers) |
Worksheet #2: What’s the Order? |
Worksheet #1: Missing Words |
Write the rules for a fun game you could play with a giant. | Listen to or view Jack and the Beanstalk. Talk about how that giant is different to Gumble. | Use pictures and speech bubbles to explain the events in the story. |
|
Zip Stage 4 Peter Pan (Timeless Tales) |
Multiple Choice Questions Worksheet & Worksheet #2 |
Worksheet #1: Which Word? |
Imagine you visited Neverland. Write a story about your adventures. | Use the script (found here) to read the story as Reader’s Theatre. | Design a poster about a mythical creature from a movie/book. |
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Zip Stage 4 The Bogeyman (Scary) |
General Worksheet #1: Sequencing |
General Worksheet #2: Verbs |
Write a story about a friendly bogeyman. | Read or view Hansel and Gretel. In pairs, compare the witch to the bogeyman. | Find stories that use scary creatures to teach children a lesson e.g. Little Red Riding Hood. |
|
Zip Stage 4 Three Wishes (Fantasy) |
General Worksheet #1: Wishing Rules |
Study adding ‘es’ to words ending in sh, ch, z, x or s (e.g. wishes). |
General Worksheet #2: Give Them Some Help! |
Discuss stories where mythical creatures have special powers. | Find examples of other mythical creatures that grant wishes. |
|
Zip Stage 4 I’m Not Afraid (Scary) |
Write a detailed description of the monster in the story. |
General Worksheet #1: Compound Words |
General Worksheet #3: Write Your Own Play |
In pairs, make a top 10 list of the scariest mythical creatures. |
General Worksheet #2: Pack Your Bags |
|
Zip Stage 4 Mr Moogle is Missing (Fantasy) |
List the ways Kate’s Mum and Dad tried to help her. |
General Worksheet #2: Wonderword |
Write a story about a friendly monster living in your bedroom cupboard. |
General Worksheet #1: Peculiar Pets Orally share responses. |
Design a ‘Missing’ poster for Mr Moogle. |
|
Zip Stage 5 The Billy Goats Gruff (Fairy Tales) |
General Worksheet #2: Actions and Reactions |
General Worksheet #1: Amazing Adjectives |
Write about what you think happened to the troll. | Classify books/movies that portray trolls as friendly OR horrible. |
General Worksheet #3: Snapshot of a story scene |
|
Zip Stage 5 The Mermaid (Myths & Legends) |
Explain why Joseph’s feelings about living under the sea change. |
General Worksheet #1: Can You See a Silent ‘B’? |
General Worksheet #3: Life Under the Sea |
Group Discussion General Worksheet #2: Fact or Fiction? |
Research facts about King Neptune. |
|
Zip Stage 5 Dr Wow in Atlantis (Adventure) |
Write a detailed character description of Uncle Harry. |
General Worksheet #1: Swapping Synonyms |
General Worksheet #2: Facts About Mammals |
In pairs, design your own mythical sea creature. | Use craft materials to create a mythical sea creature. |
|
Zip Stage 6 The Bravest Knight (Fantasy) |
General Worksheet #4: Artist’s Impression |
Create a spelling list of words with a silent ‘k’ (e.g. knight). |
General Worksheet #1: Fearful Encounters |
General Worksheet #3: Knight Jokes |
General Worksheet #2: Could you be a Knight? |
|
Zip Stage 6 Welcome to Fairyland (Fantasy) |
General Worksheet #2: Welcome to Fairyland |
Locate compound words in the story (e.g. fairy + land = fairyland). |
General Worksheet #1: Great Beginnings |
In pairs, research facts about the folklore of elves. |
General Worksheet #3: Pictures in Your Mind and on the Paper |
|
Zip Stage 6 Medusa (Myths & Legends) |
General Worksheet #3: The Road to Victory | General Worksheet #1: Similar Synonyms | Complete General Worksheet #4 then choose one of the gods or goddesses to research. | In pairs, create a mythical creature worse than Medusa. | General Worksheet #2: Who Am I? |
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Zip Stage 6 The Minotaur & the Maze (Myths & Legends) |
Write detailed character descriptions for Theseus, the King of Minos, Ariadne & the Minotaur. |
General Worksheet #1: A‘maze’ing Spelling Rules |
General Worksheet #3: Write Your Own Myth |
In a small group, decide on 10 reasons you would use to persuade the Minotaur not to eat you. | Complete General Worksheet #2 then create a poster about 10 Greek-derived prefixes. |
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Zip Stage 6 The Pearl Dragon (Myths & Legends) |
General Worksheet #3: What Would You Do? |
General Worksheet #1: Choosing Conjunctions Find 10 – 15 more conjunctions in the story. |
Worksheet #4: Tampering with Titles |
Present an oral report on the historical significance of the Chinese dragon. |
General Worksheet #2: Questions and Answers |
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Zip Stage 7 The Twelve Labours of Hercules (Myths & Legends) |
Briefly summarise each of the twelve labours of Hercules. |
General Worksheet #1: Finding ‘phunny’ Words |
General Worksheet #4: Stepmothers: Nasty or Nice? |
General Worksheet #3: Crime and Punishment Share stories within a small group. |
General Worksheet #2: Character Descriptions |
|
Zip Stage 7 Eliza & the Troll (Myths & Legends) |
General Worksheet #1: Feelings Profile |
Study the prefix ‘un’ as in Eliza returned unharmed. | Imagine Eliza does not return home. Write an alternative ending. |
General Worksheet #2: Find the Word Complete with a partner. |
Compare the troll in the story to trolls from other myths & legends. |
|
Zip Stage 7 The Little Mermaid (Fairy Tales) |
Summarise how the mermaid is feeling on each page of the story. |
General Worksheet #1: Handy Homographs |
General Worksheet #3: Imagine If... |
Partner Activity – General Worksheet #2: Just a Dash |
Research the origin of mermaids. |
|
Zip Stage 8 The Toy Dragon (Scary) |
General Worksheet #1: True or False? |
General Worksheet #2: Adding ‘ed’ |
Write a narrative about the toy dragon’s next adventure. | Design a toy dragon for good children and present it to an audience. | Complete a research project on the history of dragons. |
|
Zip Stage 8 The Luck Child (Fairy Tales) |
General Worksheet #2: What Comes Next? |
General Worksheet #1: Amazing Adverbs |
Create your own myth using the beast and old woman from the story. | In pairs, research mythical creatures with golden feathers. |
General Worksheet #3: Bad Luck, Good Luck |
|
Zip Stage 9 Sinbad (Adventure – Advanced Library) |
Explain how Sinbad escaped the dangerous situations he encountered in the story. |
Worksheet #1: Changing Verbs into Nouns |
Worksheet #2: Legendary Monsters |
Worksheet #2: Extension Activity 1 - Conduct a survey |
Worksheet #2 Extension Activity 2 – Modern day takes on mythical creatures |
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Zip Stage 9 The Magic Shop (Fantasy and Sci Fi – Advanced Library) |
Worksheet #1 Extension Activity – Design a dust jacket |
Worksheet #1: Powerful Prefixes |
Worksheet #2: The Magic Sword Task 2 - Compose an imaginary text |
Work with a partner to complete one of the Extension Activities from Worksheet #2. |
Worksheet #2: The Magic Sword Task 1 - Research magic swords |
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Related Ziptales Activities:
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