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Cloud Tea Monkeys (1999)

by Mal Peet(Favorite Author)

4.07 of 5 Votes: 4

ISBN

1406300926 (ISBN13: 9781406300925)

languge

English

genre

Fantasy

publisher

Walker Books

review 1: Cloud Tea Monkeys is a book which explores the story of a young girl named Tashi. She lives with her family in a small village next to the Himalayan Mountains and the tea plantations. When her mother falls ill she is unable to continue to work on the tea plantations. This is when Tashi realises that she must step in to help support her family financially and pay for her mother to seek medical attention. However, this doesn’t go to plan as a cruel overseer refuses to allow her to work on the tea plantations. Tashi is left feeling extremely alone, upset and isolated but to her surprise something amazing happens! Cloud Tea Monkeys is a brilliant children’s book which I thoroughly enjoyed reading. It’s full of descriptive language which allows children to create their ow... moren visual perceptions of the setting of the text. I feel that it additionally encourages children to explore the aspect of a different culture when the book is either read aloud to them or they explore it on an independent basis. Due to the length of the book and the language used within it, I feel that it’s appropriate for upper Key Stage Two children. It’s a key literacy text which I feel could be used to explore a unit of work with a year five or six class. It’s a text which is appropriate to meet the needs of a range of learning abilities. The language used is extremely descriptive which allows children to use their imagination when reading the story. Each page of the books works as a double spread so that on one side there is a page of written text and on the other a fantastic illustration. Due to the format of the book I feel that it’s therefore suitable for a range of learners. Some of the children will be able to read all of the written text whereas other children will use the illustrations to support them in their language comprehension. I think that the book could be used in a variety of ways within the classroom environment. It could be contained within the classroom book corner for the children to access on an independent basis but it may also be explored as a key literacy text. A cross curricular approach could be used in which children could write a daily diary entry perhaps from the perspective of Tashi with a focus on her feelings and emotions during the story. This would therefore not only be a literacy focus but would also relate to PSHE. The teacher would then be able to explore feelings and emotions with their class perhaps through a discussion initially with their peers and then through a whole class approach. For some of the learners to be extended during this activity they may be encouraged to tell the story from an additional characters perspective. Further ideas that would be incorporated using a cross curricular approach include the idea of using Science alongside Literacy. Perhaps for a more hands on approach to learning children may explore the process involved in making tea and then have the opportunity to taste and smell it. They could then produce a piece of writing which explores the use of instructional writing on how to make tea. One further subject that I had in mind was Art due to the brilliant illustrations used throughout the book. Children could use the illustrations to inspire their own artistic creativity, perhaps exploring the effective use of colour to create light and dark features to their own pieces of art. Cloud Tea Monkeys is an extremely descriptive and imaginative text which can be used to explore ideas in and around different cultures. It’s definitely a text which I’d include on my class bookshelf in the Upper Key Stage Two age phase.
review 2: This book this book is definitely aimed at upper KS2 readers and can be used in English to explore cultures, adjectives and perspectives.There are many characters in this book. The main character being a little girl who goes to work in the tea field for her mum as she was sick and they needed the money. The other workers in the field, including the supervisor, don't take her seriously until the world tea taster tastes the tea that the monkeys helped her pick. He was so impressed that he paid her for it and said he will continue to pay her if she can provide this tea every year. Her mum became well and they became rich and lives happily ever after. The illustrations in this book are so life-like and extremely detailed. Although the sentences can be described as simple they are packed with lots of adjectives to help you imagine what it might have been like. I enjoyed reading it! less

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