Activity Instructions

What to do

Step 1. Find somewhere comfy, with minimal distractions, to sit and read with your kids.

Step 2. Before you start, have a look at the cover image and the title of the text. What does this tell you about what might happen in the story?

Asking quality questions
Open-ended questions encourage children to develop their language by encouraging them to use a wider range of vocabulary to answer the question in a more nuanced way, because they cannot be responded to with one word answers such as yes or no. Open-ended questions require them to provide more information and detail, and to actively process how to structure their thoughts in order to deliver a coherent answer and provide sufficient details.

Position yourself as curious - about the world, but also the child’s thoughts. Ask genuine questions (those that you don’t know the answer too), and work to invite a genuine response, rather than expecting a specific answer.

Try to avoid judging answers as right or wrong (posing questions such as “I wonder…” questions helps to take the wrong and right out of the answer, and allow children to explore and test their own ideas without fear of being wrong).

Continue questioning after the child has answered, asking, “Why do you say that?” This further reveals a child’s thinking.

For more evidence-based advice on developing oral language in children click here.

The text contains question prompts that tell you where to stop and have a chat about the story. Or, you're welcome to create your own questions and have your own discussions.

The power of pauses
Pauses have been shown to be an effective tool for encouraging children to participate in conversations because they slow down the interaction and allow everyone (but especially children) the time to think, process, and construct a response

Try counting to five before you prompt your child for a response. If there's still no response, consider asking the question again in a different way.

For more evidence-based advice on developing oral language in children, click here.

Step 4. After you've read the story and worked through the reflection, you could conduct a recount. Children should be able to give one sentence answers to the following:

What happened in Part 1?
Usually, Dani will set out to do something and then encounter a problem. Dani might also have an emotional response.
What happened in Part 2?
Usually, Dani will receive some good advice from Dad the Dingo.
What happened in Part 3?
Usually, Dani will fix the problem.

Step 5. You could also discuss the themes that were present in this story.

Discuss:

I wonder if there was a point in the story where Dani was kind/respectful?
Do you think Dani did a good job of including Quinn at first? Or did she need to try harder? Why?
It's really important for children to understand that Dani tried hard, but her first efforts didn't really include Quinn because she simply wasn't able to do what everyone else in the group could do. Effective inclusivity is not about treating everyone exactly the same. It is about providing equal opportunities to someone that accommodates their differences.
Can you think about a time in your life when something similar happened?

Don't lead. Listen.
It is important for children to discover themes and lessons from the story for themselves. It is open to their interpretation, and they cannot be wrong in terms of what they felt or gathered from the episode.

As adults, we can easily see some themes (plus, we have the title of this lesson!) However, children might see, think, or feel something that we haven't even thought of.

What's next?

Use this story as an opportunity to talk about people who are a bit different.

Different, but the same.
Children should be taught that people have different abilities, both physical and cognitive, but we are more alike than different.

Be mindful of your language. Modelling language is as important as modelling actions in terms of what associations students develop towards differences. For example, ‘person with a disability’ not ‘disabled person.’

Answer any questions in a very matter of fact way so there is nothing mysterious. If we tell students not to ask questions, that can give them the impression that disability is somehow wrong or taboo. Always aim to give an open and clear response.

In response to “Why can’t that person walk?”, you could say “They might have been born like that,” or, “They might have had an accident”. If the person with a disability is using equipment, it is good to explain what that does. So you might say, “They use the wheelchair to get around”.
It is best to stick to factual language and don’t be afraid to use the word disability. You don’t need to describe the person with a disability as special. You can simply say they are blind, deaf, disabled and so on.
The most important thing is to ensure students learn that disability is just part of life and that you treat people with a disability just like everyone else – with kindness and respect.

Find out more here.

You might have someone in your family who uses a wheelchair, or you might be able to recollect an interaction you had on the street.

Children will naturally be curious about these differences, and they're certainly not trying to be rude.

Together, come up with a list of questions you might like to ask someone who uses a wheelchair, or has another difference. This will give you a chance to address these questions when you're feeling comfortable and prepared.

If possible, you might like to seek someone who uses a wheelchair and invite them to speak to your children directly.

Want more Dani?

Try another Dani story. Check out all the Dani the Dingo Social and Emotional Learning lessons here.

Dani the Friendly Dingo - Inclusivity

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