A Writing Root for The Invention of Hugo Cabret

Overview and Outcomes:

This is a 17-session Literary Leaf for The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick and covers all aspects of the Upper Key Stage 2 content domain. This resource can be used in conjunction with the Writing Root for the text or as a standalone Reading Comprehension resource. Helped by a mysterious toy booth owner, a treasured friend, a heart-shaped key and a stolen notebook, children will join Hugo on his quest to fix the mechanical man left in his possession by his late father.  Along the way, children will practice their skills of sequencing and summarising using Brian Selznick’s beautifully detailed illustrations, as well as predicting key events, comparing characters and plotting emotions on a graph.  There will be plenty of opportunities to consider the links between characters, events, dialogue and imagery and children will be able to ask and answer their own questions.

Synopsis of Text:

ORPHAN, CLOCK KEEPER, AND THIEF.

Twelve-year-old Hugo lives in the walls of a busy Paris train station, where his survival depends on secrets and anonymity.

But when his world suddenly interlocks with an eccentric girl and her grandfather, Hugo's undercover life, and his most precious secret, are put in jeopardy.

A cryptic drawing, a treasured notebook, a stolen key, a mechanical man, and a hidden message from Hugo's dead father form the backbone of this intricate, tender, and spellbinding mystery.

Links:

Film, clocks, inventions, automatons, moving pictures, France, Paris