The Big Race - Level 23-24

In The Big Race, Duck Lake Primary School's challenge of choosing a runner from only eleven students leads to the unlikely selection of Trevor-chosen solely for his long legs. But can he actually run? This humorous tall tale blends quirky illustrations with lively narration to entertain readers while subtly teaching about storytelling techniques. Thought bubbles, similes, typeface variations, and maps all contribute to a multi-layered reading experience. The story builds in exaggeration and figurative language, with phrases like œlegs like an antelope and œa fate worse than death offering ample opportunities to explore language devices. Designed for older primary students, this text can be used to highlight first-person perspective, humour in literature, and the value of visual text features. With a combination of relatable school setting and outrageous outcomes, this story provides rich material for comparison with more realistic fiction and fosters an appreciation for creative storytelling.

Educational Benefits:

• Builds understanding of figurative language and tall tales.
• Supports identification of narrative voice and character point of view.
• Encourages critical thinking about text and illustration relationships.
• Reinforces prediction and inference skills.

Classroom Ideas:

• Create a class œtall tale with exaggerated characters.
• Compare The Big Race to a realistic sports narrative.
• Map out the race and estimate distances as a maths activity.
• Explore speech and thought bubbles to develop comic strips.

Information:

• Suitable for ages: 7-9
• Format: Paperback
• Reading Level: 23-24 (Silver)