Use drama activities (e.g. Conscience corridor) to discuss whether Little Billy should go into The Forest of Sin and how he feels about it. Every now and again his mother would callout to him, saying, “Little Billy, what are you up to in there?” Little Billy was awfully tired of being good’. Write a new story with this as the first line. What happens next? And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don't believe in magic will never find it.

Imagine that you are an estate agent trying to sell a Minpin’s house to a new Minpin family. Make a poster using publishing software to advertise it. Use different types of media to show some of the other creatures that might live in The Forest of Sin. Little Billy stares into ‘the everlasting gloom and doom of the forest’. Can you create a picture that uses perspective to show this?

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When Little Billy first enters The Forest of Sin he can hear absolute silence. Can you find a place where there is absolute silence? What things make sounds? How are they made? How are sounds measured? What is the loudest / quietest sound that you can make? This was the last work of literature published by Roald Dahl and was published posthumously a year after his death. This novella is a fantastic introduction to the iconic author and is a great way to talk to children about overcoming their fears and helping others as well as exposing them to the language of a master storyteller at work. Links and themes: Roald Dahl was a British novelist, short story writer and screenwriter of Norwegian descent, who rose to prominence in the 1940's with works for both children and adults, and became one of the world's bestselling authors. And now Little Billy was kneeling on the chair, gazing with longing through the window at the famous Forest of Sin.

Entering The Forest of Sin is ‘like being among the dead men in an enormous empty green cathedral’. Can you think of similes to describe different places?? (see Resources below) Draw a map of The Forest of Sin, including the different places, people and creatures mentioned in the story. Stop reading the book at the point when Little Billy sees ‘a sight that froze is blood and made icicles in his veins’. Discuss what this might be. Could you describe / draw what Little Billy has seen? Little Billy’s mother was always telling him exactly what he was allowed to do and what he was notallowed to do.One of the things he was NEVER NEVER allowed to do, the most exciting of them all, wasto go out through the garden gate all by himself and explore the world beyond. Just then a funny thing happened. Little Billy began to hear somebody whispering in his ear. He knew exactly who it was. It was the Devil. The Devil always started whispering to him when hewas especially bored. Little Billy’s mother was always telling him exactly what he was allowed to do and what he was not allowed to do’. Make a list of things that you are / aren’t allowed to do. Can you think of reasons why you aren’t allowed to do certain things (see Resources below)? The Gruncher makes lots of strange sounds, e.g. Whooshing, swooshing, whiffing. Can you think of any other examples of onomatopoeia?

The Gruncher uses his sense of smell to find humans. What other animals use smell? How are their noses adapted for this? Little Billy goes out through the garden gate in a ‘jiffy’. How long is this? Can you think of other ways of describe different periods of time? Which ones are the shortest / longest? On this sunny summer afternoon, Little Billy was kneeling on a chair in the living room, gazing out through the window at the wonderful world beyond. His mother was in the kitchen doing the ironing and although the door was open shecouldn’t see him. The Minpins wear clothes that are ‘the sort of thing people wore two or three hundred years ago’. Find out about clothing and fashion from different periods in history.Danger posters, setting descriptions, character descriptions, information reports,postcards Main Outcome:

Look at the illustration of Little Billy first entering The Forest of Sin. Think of synonyms to describe the size of the trees and words to describe Little Billy.The author makes up the names of different creatures that might live in The Forest of Sin. Can you make up a name for a new creature? What does it look like? What happens to it?