Handa’s Surprise– by Eileen Browne A modern classic named one of the best culturally diverse picture books in the UK, this is the story of Handa, who is part of the Luo tribe in south-west Kenya.
Handa decides to take seven pieces of delicious fruit to her friend, Akeyo, who lives in the neighbouring village. But as Handa wonders, I wonder what fruit Akeyo will like best? A series of sneaky animals steal something from Handa's basket, which she is carrying on her head... When Handa reaches Akeyo, will she have anything left to offer her friend? Richly illustrated, brimming with luscious fruit and cheeky wild animals, this mouth-watering story is for the youngest of readers. In the best pantomime spirit, children will long to tell Handa what is happening right behind her!
We have been talking with the children about healthy eating and all the different fruits that Handa has in her basket. We have been reading the story using some little finger puppets, so that the children can take turns at being animals such as a zebra or an ostrich and making the different animal noises and thinking about Africa where they all live.
Thank you for bringing in some exotic fruits for the children to explore. They have used their fine motor skills to cut them up and make fruit kebabs. They have tried papaya, mango, kiwi, lychee amongst others. We have looked at the sounds in the names of the fruits and matched them to our names and things we know.
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