Little Red Riding Hood: 4. Stay on the path
Ma warns Red Riding Hood to stay on the path but she is distracted by the woodland fairies. Then she feels a tap on her shoulder and turns to see a huge hairycreature in a straw hat. But who is it..?
The story
Red Riding Hood is getting ready to visit her Grandma. Her Ma reminds her that the path runs all the way to Grandma's cottage in the woods and that Red Riding Hood must stay on it to keep safe. Red Riding Hood opens a green gate and is in the woods on her own for the very first time. She hears the sound of tiny voices - fairies - and without realising it she starts to stray from the path. Suddently the fairies disappear and Red Riding Hood finds herself confronted by an animal wearing a straw hat, who claims to be a large, hairy dog. The Wolf, in disguise, asks where Red Riding Hood is going and when she tells him the Wolf suddenly bounds away through the trees. Red Riding Hood is left feeling a little confused...and a little worried...
Story questions
Why must Red Riding Hood go to Grandma's cottage alone?
Her Ma has injured her ankle so cannot join her - and Red Riding Hood is particularly keen to see Grandma because she hasn't been very well
What animals does Red Riding Hood see in the woods?
Birds singing in the branches...bumble bees...and little brown rabbits
What causes Red Riding Hood to stray from the path?
She hears the tiny voices of fairies and she has always hoped to see fairies in the woods - so, almost without thinking, she strays from the path to get closer
What does the Wolf claim to be?
Just a large, hairy dog - out for a walk
Why does the Wolf hurry away?
We don't know for sure - but the Wolf has shown a great interest in Grandma's cottage, so more than likely that's where he's going...
The song: 'Stay on the path' (vocal)
Notice how the music of the verses has a fast, jumpyrhythm. By contrast, the notes of the chorus are slower and smoother.
Practise singing Verse 4 very quietly, then singing louder again for the final chorus.
Remember to take a good breath at the start of each line of the chorus and sing it as smoothly as you can.
Click here for the backing track version of the song or go to the Clips page.
Literacy links
| Year | Activity |
|---|---|
| Reception / Year 1 | Remind the children of the main events of the story so far and ask them to sequence them in the correct order. |
| Reception / Year 1 | Ask the children to think of words that describe how Red Riding Hood feels when she sees the fairies. |
| Year 2 | Each verse links an animal with a verb - eg ‘blackbirds singing’. Ask the children to make up some new lines for the song which link other animals with a verb. |
Music activity
Sarah Jane reminds the children how they sang loudly in the song, except for the verse about fairies when they sang very quietly.
Then the children clap loudly and quietly in time to the steady beat of the music, following Sarah Jane's lead. She cues them when to clap loudly and when to clap quietly.
Talk about the variation between loud and quiet in music - called dynamics. Varying the dynamics in a piece of music helps to ensure it remains interesting!
Meet the characters
Listening music
The Wolf's Theme - from Peter and the Wolf, by Sergei Prokofiev (1936).
How would the children describe the music? What is the composer trying to tell us about this wolf?
The music is played by Frenchhorns. Can the children name any other brass or wind instruments (trumpet, trombone, bassoon, flute, oboe, clarinet, etc)?
Would this music be good to describe the wolf in our story or not?
Other KS1 Music series
Resources
![]()
Teacher's Notes
Guidance on all the content (pdf)
![]()
Music - Stay on the path
Download / print the music (pdf)
![]()
Lyrics - Stay on the path
Download / print the lyrics (pdf)
![]()
Story transcript
Download / print the story (pdf)
