Read the story of Jack and the Beanstalk.
Get the children to imagine they are film directors and divide the story into scenes.

  • Jack getting the magic beans, mum isn’t happy
  • Jack planting the beans, going to bed and waking up next morning to see a giant beanstalk
  • Jack climbing up the beanstalk and looking around the new land
  • Jack meeting the Giant’s wife and hiding when the Giant comes home
  • Jack escaping from the Giant and climbing down the beanstalk and chopping it down.
I always find 5 scenes are enough to do in class then there can be 5/6 children per group. Children are given 5 minutes to make 1 silent scene of the story. (Each group should be given their scene in secret and other groups need to guess the scene in the performance session.)
When 5 minutes are up – each group will perform their scene and the teacher can freeze frame/still image them. (Get the children to freeze in position at any part of the scene – other groups to guess what is being portrayed).
Role on the wall draw the outline of the giant on a large piece of paper and brainstorm about the giant – what type of person he is? How he feels when he smells a human. How he feels when the beanstalk is chopped down? What does he look like etc.
Hot seating – teacher as the giant. Telling his side of the story. How upset he is that someone came into his house and stole his golden hen.
The drama can be extended in a second lesson – where children work in groups to show what happens next.