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Jack and the Beanstalk: 3. And the beanstalk grew

Jack sells Daisy to the man for his five 'magic' beans. But when he gets home Ma tells him he's been tricked and she throws the beans into the garden. Jack goes to bed...and during the night something starts to growoutside...

Episode 5 of the story

Jack decides he can definitely trust the old man and so he decides to accept the five beans in exchange in Daisy. The man promises he will take very good care of Daisy...and he reaches into his coat to give Jack a new pair of shoes, which he says Jack is going to need. Then Jack says farewell to Daisy. At home Ma is eager to know if Jack got five gold coins for Daisy but when he tells her what has happened she is horrified telling Jack that he has been tricked. Jack is sure that the beans really are magic...but Ma sends Jack to bed and flings the beans out of the window into the garden.

Story questions - episode 5

What two things does the man give Jack?

Five 'magic' beans for Daisy...but also a pair of shoes, which he says Jack is going to need

How does Jack think his Ma will react to the beans?

Jack is sure his Ma will be pleased - after all, the beans are magic and they are going to be rich

What does Jack's Ma tell him about the beans?

She says he has been tricked - and she sends him to bed without any supper (not that there is any of course)

What does Ma do with the beans?

She opens the kitchen window and flings them into the garden

Episode 6 of the story

Jack is worried about the beans in the garden. What if some birds should eat the beans before the magic has a chance to work? Jack goes to bed hoping that the magic will come true that night. If what the old man has told him is true then Jack will be able to look after his Ma and all the other villagers too. Jack goes to sleep and then something strange begins to happen...there's a rumbling sound outside in the garden, as if something is trying to burst out of the ground. There's a rustling sound too, which carries on right through the night...

Story questions - episode 6

What is Jack worried will happen to the beans?

He's worried that birds may eat the beans before the magic has a chance to work

What wish does Jack make?

He wishes that the magic will come true that night, so that he can make Ma and all the other villagers happy again

What is the first sound that can be heard in the garden?

A low rumbling - like something trying to burst out of the ground

What is the second sound in the garden?

A rustling - like leaves - that goes on right through the night

The song: 'And the beanstalk grew' (vocal)

Practise singing And the beanstalk grew making sure that children sing the very lownotes and the slow, ascending scale in the chorus with accuracy.

Help children to understand that the notes in the chorus are slow and long.

As the children sing they can crouch low then gradually stretch up tall, like the beanstalk.

Click here for the backing track video.

Literacy links

YearActivity
Year 1Use volunteers to act out the scene between Jack and his Ma from Episode 5, showing how upset she is and how she throws the beans into the garden. The whole class could act out the part of the beanstalk as it rises.
Year 2Discuss where the children think the beanstalk might lead. What would they do if they were Jack? Write a line or two describing what they would like to find at the top of the beanstalk - what people, what animals, what buildings?

Listening music

Extract from Passacaglia, Opus 1, by Anton Webern

Listen to the opening. Can children hear an instrument playing high notes (a flute)? Can they also hear notes being played on string instruments that are being plucked, not bowed.

The string notes are spaced apart with a pause between each one. What is this pause called? (A rest - a gap or silence).

What is the tempo (speed)? Slow (just like our song today).

Other KS1 Music series

Resources