Educational Activities: Bo the Brave, by Bethan Woollvin

Bo the Brave
Author: Bethan Woollvin
Illustrator: Bethan Woollvin
Peachtree Publishing
1 April 2020
32 pages

Book description from Goodreads: “A feisty little girl learns who the real monsters are in this brilliantly funny medieval adventure.

Once, there lived a little girl called Bo. Bo wanted to be just like her brothers and capture a fearsome monster. Bo is small, too small to catch a monster–or so her brothers say. But Bo isn’t one to take no for an answer, so she sets off on a quest to catch a monster of her own. Can she defeat the furious griffin, conquer the hideous kraken, and triumph over the monstrous dragon? Or has Bo got the wrong idea who the real monsters are?

Author-illustrator Bethan Woollvin, the creator of the New York Times Best Illustrated Little Red, employs her signature style in this original fairy tale with a clever twist. Readers are sure to fall in love with Woollvin’s newest vibrant and sassy protagonist.”

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Educational Activities inspired by Bethan Woollvin’s Bo the Brave:

Before Reading–From looking at the front and back cover:
- Does this seem like our world, or is it about a different time and place?
- What type of character do you think Bo is?
- What do you think of when you’re told a character is “brave”?
- Who/what do you see sneaking about on the back cover?
- If you could ask the author any question before you read the book, what would it be?
After Reading–Now that you’ve read the book:
- Which of the three creatures that Bo encounters on her adventure do you like the most?
- What does the story teach us about who/what monsters are?
- How do you think Bo’s relationship with her brothers will change after this story?
- At the end of this story, we learn that Bo and her brothers “loved roaming the land and learning about all the amazing she came across.” What type of creature do you think they met next?
- From time to time, this story rhymed. Were they are moments that really stood out for that reason?
- What other story does Bo the Brave remind you of?
Writing–Bo the Brave has three monsters in it: a griffin, a kraken, and a dragon. Write up your own list of other monsters that Bo might’ve encountered. Consider using the alphabet to guide your choices, such as “B is for Bigfoot” or “N is Nine Naughty Penguins!” Be as scary or silly as you choose!
- Feel free to create illustrations if you want.
- Perhaps you might want to share your results with a sibling or adult?
Activities–This climax of this story has a lot to do with a dragon, so let’s celebrate dragons together. With an adult’s help, try the following dragon-themed crafts:
- Dragon Corner Bookmark–Easy to make and useful, too. They’re so cute!
- Dragon Mask–What better way to have fun with dragons than to become one? With this printable and a little decorating, you’ve got all you need for some dragontastic fun!
- Make a Dragon Snack–It’s rare to have fully edible crafts in these Educational Activities, but this one sure is! Chocolate chips, raisins, a cashew, and a pear. Yum!
- Paper Plate Dragon–It’s amazing how a single paper plate can transform into such a cool puppet.
- Paper Puppet Dragon–Yes, another dragon puppet of sorts, but the results here are far different the paper plate version. What’s terrific is how this one scales up or down in terms of difficulty (for older or younger kids).
Further Reading–In addition to being about dragons (and other “monsters,”) this book is about bravery. Which of these other picture books about bravery have you read? (Click on the book cover for more information on any of these titles!)