Five Minutes' Peace (Large Family)

Product Information

I would strongly recommend this book to a KS1 class to discuss how hard parents work and the importance of having our own time. It is easy to follow because of the familiar situation, so children with English as an Additional Language will have some understanding of the storyline.

Murphy’s art, each print telling its own story, makes beautiful framed prints for children’s bedrooms or nurseries. My earliest memory (my mum tells me I was two), is sitting on the kitchen floor surrounded by sheets of drawings.Deciding to sneak off for a relaxing bubble bath, she carefully sets a tray with tea, toast and cake, and quietly heads towards the door. A stunning 30th anniversary edition of a family picture book favourite, this is the story of Mrs Large the elephant – who just needs five minutes of peace and quiet away from her boisterous children! These worksheets feature some illustrations of the Large family and includes some handwriting patterns for them to trace too. I completely understand her wanting privacy, and I'm sure it's a perfectly fine thing to leave your children to tend to themselves for a few minutes, but anything can happen when children are unsupervised. Five Minutes' Peace' is one of a series of books based on the 'Large family', another popular story in the series is 'A Piece of Cake'.

Taking the section of when Lester, Laura and baby come into the bathroom, children can explore what items they may bring; what they may read instead of a book or what story they may read, a different instrument or melody they may play, and what they may bring for their mother instead of toys as baby did. Unfortunately she never locked the door, and I have a clear memory of sitting on the (lid down, naturlich!I discovered this book many years ago when I was home raising three young children and wondering if I would ever enjoy a hot meal or converse with an adult in full sentences ever again. Beautifully illustrated, the text is on two levels, so that adults can enjoy a wry smile while reading it to their youngsters. But there’s never a dull moment with the Larges, and it soon becomes clear that mum’s quiet time is to be very short-lived! Georgia shares the 'real reality of motherhood' with five to ten minute daily episodes, designed to offer comfort to parents in small doses everyday. During her career she wrote many fantastic children’s books including the Worst Witch series and more books about the Large family!

Mum is no sooner enjoying the peace when one by one the children barge into the bathroom to play instruments and recite stories and just create havoc in general. At only eighteen she finished her first novel, The Worst Witch, which was based heavily on her own experiences at the convent school.

But there’s never a dull moment with the Larges, and it soon becomes clear that mum's quiet time is to be very short-lived!

Also, could look at what Mrs Large could have done to prevent the children coming in or if Mr Large could have helped in anyway. For younger children, you can use these lovely themed worksheets to help them with their pencil control.

Celebrate thirty years of the Large family in this stunning anniversary edition of a modern picture book classic. Five Minutes' Peace' by Jill Murphy, tells the story of a mother elephant who just wants some time alone in the bath, however her three children have other ideas! A sweet little board book that mom (or dad) can read with their little ones - maybe they’ll even take the hint. This is a story I would use with children in the EYFS because of the simple lexis and big, bold pictures. Story Books < Story Titles E-H Five Minutes' Peace - Jill Murphy Elmer - David McKee Fantastic Mr Fox - Roald Dahl Farmer Duck - Martin Waddell Farmyard Hullabaloo - Giles Andreae Flat Stanley - Jeff Brown Funnybones - Allan Ahlberg Gangsta Granny - David Walliams Guess How Much I Love You - Sam McBratney Hair Love - Matthew A.