Hidden Treasure & Looking at Letters - Level 25-26

In Hidden Treasure, Karen and her brother Toby uncover an old letter containing a rhyming riddle, sending them on a thrilling treasure hunt across their grandparents' property. This third-person narrative combines dialogue and mystery, drawing readers into an imaginative journey that explores the past. Looking at Letters is a non-fiction companion text that explores how people have used letters to communicate throughout history. It includes facsimiles, a timeline, and procedural text to illustrate the evolution of the postal system. By blending adventure with historical literacy, this book encourages readers to explore how communication has changed and deepens understanding of both storytelling and factual reporting. Together, these titles promote critical reading, decoding skills, and appreciation for the written word's role across generations.

Educational Benefits:

• Enhances understanding of communication history through timeline reading.
• Encourages interpretation of riddles and clues to build decoding skills.
• Promotes discussion of personal and historical communication methods.
• Supports analysis of narrative structure and sequencing of events.

Classroom Ideas:

• Have students write their own riddles or hidden clues and exchange them with peers.
• Create a class display of old and new communication methods.
• Write a procedural guide for mailing a letter, using the non-fiction text as a model.
• Recreate and interpret historical letters through role-play or dramatic reading.

Safety & Information:

• Suitable for ages 8-11
• Book dimensions: 207mm x 148mm
• No small or detachable parts
• Designed for safe use in literacy centres and classrooms