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Copywork
About This Passage
Dahl builds suspense with slow verbs — 'pushing,' 'ducked,' 'poked' — before exploding into 'shriek of excitement.' The adverbs 'carefully' and 'very very cautiously' slow the reader down so the reveal lands hard. Watch how Dahl uses sentence length: short, short, tiny, then a long one that bursts open.
Carefully, Mr Fox began pushing up one of the floorboards. The board creaked most terribly and they all ducked down, waiting for something awful to happen. Nothing did. So Mr Fox pushed up a second bo...
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Discussion Questions
Narration Prompt
In your own words, retell Chapter 10. Where does Mr Fox lead his children to dig? What does Mr Fox refuse to tell the Small Foxes, and why? What do they find when they push up the floorboards? What are Mr Fox's first orders once they climb up?
Discussion Questions
- When the Small Foxes ask Mr Fox where they are going, he refuses to tell them because they might 'go crazy with excitement' or 'die of disappointment.' What does Mr Fox's answer reveal about how he sees his job as a father?
- Mr Fox first says 'I know where I want to be, but I can't possibly be sure we're anywhere near it.' Later he shouts 'I hit it slap in the middle! First time!' What does this mix of uncertainty and triumph reveal about Mr Fox's mind?
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Vocabulary Builder
Item 1
Wonderful or amazing beyond the usual.
Item 2
A strong feeling of eager happiness about something good.
Item 3
Dark and hard to see through.
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Critical Thinking
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