Quentin Blake illustrated all of Roald Dahl's children's books. And now he has illustrated a long-lost story by Beatrix Potter. Here are a couple of ways to enrich your class with Quentin Blake's work.
This trailer for The Tale of Kitty-in-Boots features Quentin Blake's illustrations and Dame Helen Mirren reading the opening passage of the book. It's simple and clear and lends itself well to work on descriptions, clothes, and adjectives (black, young, kind, old, common, shocked, surprised, little, fur-lined, curious, clean, thick).
It finishes with a classic cliffhanger: "It was a long time before I guessed there were in fact two black cats." Perfect for a "What happens next?" activity.
You can find the text of the extract on the publisher's site.
Write a Card
Quentin Blake's own site offers the opportunity to choose and send e-cards with Blake illustrations. Why not give a letter or card-writing activity a twist by asking pupils to send you, or each other, cards, either with a greeting, or explaining why they chose that particular card.