Author: S Nurser

Activity 1
Read Chapter 1
What clues are there in the book that tell us that the Oliver is magical. Why do you think the author chose the surname moon?
Look at how the speech has been punctuated. What is green flu?
Why did he not want to look after his sister?
What does the next door neighbours name tell us about her?
Independent task
Write a diary entry about his day so far. (make sure they include details about the characters feeling when they find a bomb.)
Activity 2
Read Chapter 2
What did Olivers mum look like at the beginning of the chapter.
Why does Oliver’s mum say he is such a good boy?
Why is Oliver upset when he sees the prickleberry pie on the floor?
Why has Mrs Beardbristle been described as a dragon?
What animals did Oliver see on his way to Mrs Beardbristle?
What punctuation has the author used to show a stuuter when Oliver is speaking?
Why did Mrs Beardbristle wash his tongue with soap?

Activity 3
Read Chapter 3
Why did Oliver wish he had thought of using magic to make the cauldron bigger earlier?
Why do you think Oliver wasn’t allowed to do magic at home on his own?
What had happened to the missing wand?
What had his little sister done with the wand?
Activity 4
Read Chapter 5
What was the silver rope that was looped around the house?
How do you know that the people were scared?
How did they capture the spider?
Why did Oliver feel a lurch of panic? (page 63)

Activity 5
Read Chapter 6
Why did the Mayor and lots of members of the crowd all turn at Oliver’s shout?
What was Oliver brilliant plan?
Why did Oliver offer to take the disguised purple pills instead of his dad?
Why did Oliver think his plan had failed to begin with?
What did Mr Moon do to make Mrs Beardbristle smile?
What had dad bought to make Oliver mum feel better?
Activity 6
Now that you have finished the book, crate a cartoon strip of the story, making sure that you include all of the main events.