Hands Up, Wolf! Level 17-18

Hands Up, Wolf! is a creative and modern retelling of Little Red Riding Hood presented in a play format. With humorous references to other fairy tales like Goldilocks and the Three Bears, this witty take on a classic features stage directions, lively dialogue, and a fun mix of colloquial and specialised vocabulary. Students will enjoy engaging with the book through expressive reading, identifying stage cues, and recognising how traditional tales can be adapted. The play script encourages participation and builds oral language fluency, while the word study components include contractions, compound words, silent letters, and multisyllabic words. This format offers a strong foundation for exploring dramatic texts and contrasting genres. The book supports comprehension through visual literacy and encourages readers to examine story structure and themes such as problem solving and justice.

Educational Benefits:

• Develops oral fluency and performance skills through play reading.
• Encourages genre comparison and narrative structure analysis.
• Expands vocabulary with multisyllabic words and silent letters.
• Reinforces understanding of character and plot in alternative texts.

Classroom Ideas:

• Perform the play in small groups or as a class activity.
• Create character profiles for the wolf and Red Riding Hood.
• Rewrite the ending to give it a different twist or moral.
• Compare this play to the original fairy tale and list similarities and differences.

Safety & Information:

• Ages: 6-8
• Book size: 200mm x 210mm
• Paperback, 24 pages
• Safety: Designed for educational use; suitable for guided reading