What if not...?

We have been reading a fictional story called "Gone Away" in Literacy. The story is told from the viewpoint a boy who has started hanging around wih a new friend as his best friend has "Gone Away". The story is explored through flashbacks with comparisons of time spent with the old and new friend and their differences in nature; the first being selfish and manipulative and the latter open and fun. We were surprised, at the end of the story, to discover that the old friend had not moved away but died in an accident.

We then explored, through role play, the alternative ending to the story, thinking about: What if not dead? What if the best friend had moved away? The children considered how the narrator would react when meeting up with his best friend after a period of time. Would he fall back in line with his manipulation? Or would he finally stand up to him? All the pieces were different but in keeping with the characters in the story.

Well done Coconut Class.