Overview and Outcomes:

This is a three-week Writing Root for The Last Garden by Rachel Ip in which children will find a range of seed packets left in class with an invitation from the main character to plant a garden in their classroom. In the packets, children will find abstract nouns which they can use to build abstract noun phrases e.g. “primroses of peace”. Children will go on to write in a range of genres, building toward writing their own version of this narrative about a community overcoming adversity.

Synopsis of Text:

In a war-torn city, a little girl tends to the last garden. But everyone is leaving and soon the girl has to leave too. The garden is all alone now but soon the seeds scatter throughout the city and the roots take hold.  Inspired by true events in Syria and war gardens around the world and throughout history, The Last Garden is a thoughtful, tender story of hope, touching on issues of conflict and migration, from a talented debut picture book pairing.

Text Rationale:

Inspired by true events in Syria, this touching story will open up conversations around the impact of war and migration.  Mirroring themes in the book, the story opens up a safe space to explore how people deal with conflict and what happens when people are forced to leave. This is ultimately a story of hope and healing which could pair well with aspects of the science and art curriculums as children explore the cyclical nature of life and the appreciation of beauty, even in times of hardship.

Links and themes:

Migration, refugees, gardens, overcoming adversity, war, conflict, hope, healing, safety

Date written: December 2021