The worm who knew karate! By Jill Lever and Terry Denton

If a worm has no back bone, is it really that tough?

We are often told to aspire to be the early bird…what would a worm aspire to be like?

Is it fair to say that all worms hang out with bad apples?

There are too many worm analogies floating through my head right now…I’m sure you can come up with some more – would love to hear them!

The worm who knew karate By Jill Lever and Terry Denton is a hilarious book about a worm who decides to become a braver and stronger worm through the art of karate! Which made me think….how can we help our children to build their confidence? And what do those worms in my worm farm really get up to? Maybe it’s a secret dojo I have never been aware of….
Confidence building in young children is vital. We need to set them up so that they can make it through life’s ups and downs at any stage. By reading books that have characters who make positive changes in their lives allows children to see what they can do when they are in a difficult situation. I know your child is not a worm

but this book shows them that they can make changes – they can learn something they are unskilled in, they can change friendship groups, they can be different and they can make themselves the best they can be. Books are a great way to tackle those bigger issues and make conversation around them a lot easier.
BUT HOW CAN WE LINK THIS BOOK TO SUSTAINABILITY?
Get yourself a worm farm! Do you need convincing? Here are ten reasons why you need one today:

1. Worm farms are relatively cheap and need little maintenance.
2. All your fruit, vegetable and loose leaf tea scraps can do in there
3. They provide nutritious fertiliser for your garden through their wee. No more store bought chemicals!
4. They are pets that do not need walking. Your children can easily look after them. There will be no arguments!
5. You only have to outlay money on your first purchase – worms do their own thing after that!
6. We have had ours for 5 years and haven’t had to do anything to it so I would say they last for a long time.
7. They do not smell – great lid design and ventilation.
8. Easy to use tap to get rid of the worm wee and easily removed lid to feed your worms.
9. No more stinky bin juice or changing the bin daily.
10. Your moving one step closer to having a more sustainable household!

Literacy lesson ideas:

Think of other sayings like ‘The early bird catches the worm’ Create a story or picture to go with one of these so that the meaning changes.

 – Barking up the wrong tree