Buried Thunder
Teachers’ Resources
By
Annie Fox
CONTENTS
Introduction
3
Overview for Scheme of Work
4
Navigator
5–6
Lesson Plans
7
Assessment
49
Acknowledgements
The author and publishers are grateful for permission to include the following copyright material in this
resource:
Review by Geraldine Brennan of Buried Thunder by Tim Bowler, The Observer, 3.4.2011, copyright ©
Guardian News and Media Ltd 2011, reproduced by permission of GNM Ltd.
Extracts from Buried Thunder by Tim Bowler (OUP, 2011), copyright © Tim Bowler 2011, reproduced by
permission of Oxford University Press.
Review of Buried Thunder by Tim Bowler, Kirkus Reviews, 1.9.2011, reproduced by permission of Kirkus
Reviews, www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/
We have tried to trace and contact all copyright holders before publication. If notified, the publishers will be
pleased to rectify any errors or omissions at the earliest opportunity.
Images:
p1: OUP; p23: Tatiana Belova / Shutterstock; James R. Martin / Shutterstock; Jenny Solomon /
Shutterstock.com; Bikeworldtravel / Shutterstock.com; p26: OUP
Layout by Mark Walker. Artworks for the Teacher Pack series are by Mark Walker and Steve Evans.
INTRODUCTION
English teachers don’t need to be told the
enormous value and pleasure of reading whole
texts as class readers. Little compares with that
feeling when a class are truly engaged in the
reading of a really good book. Fortunately,
contemporary writers of fiction for young adults
continue to offer fresh opportunities to enjoy
literature with students.
Oxford Rollercoasters is a series that offers
teachers the opportunity of studying first-class
novels as whole-class readers with Year 7, 8
and 9 students. Each set of materials has been
written in response to the diverse needs of
students in those year groups.
Focus on assessment of reading
Oxford Rollercoasters includes titles with varied
themes, challenging subject matter and
engaging plots. For example, Noughts and
Crosses takes a contemporary slant on racism;
The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas explores the
Holocaust through the eyes of a young German
boy; Buried Thunder is a psychological thriller
which begins with a young girl discovering two
bodies in a forest.
In the latest wave of Rollercoasters, each novel
is accompanied by innovative and engaging
teaching materials, designed to help all students
access the texts and also to reflect the National
Curriculum Programmes of Study. The key
concepts of competence, creativity, cultural and
critical understanding are clearly addressed, and
the schemes offer a wide range of crosscurricular opportunities.
The latest teaching materials are firmly based on
developing reading skills, though teaching plans
include approaches to literature through oral
work, drama and media. Theories behind both
assessment for learning and thinking skills are
evident in the lesson plans.
Time-saving resources
In each on-line Teacher’s Pack there is a
compact Overview which summarizes the work
scheme, identifies the specific reading skills and
strategies being developed, and the resources
available for each lesson.
Lesson Plans suggest particular focuses and
learning outcomes, but the Word files can be
adapted to suit the level of progression for each
particular class. All Resource sheets can be
easily adapted for differentiation.
The Navigator offers a clear plot summary,
identifying the stages in the structure of the
novel. It is designed to help teachers adapt the
pace and detail of work according to the needs
of their class.
Every set of lesson plans ends with its own
student Reading Assessment Progress sheet,
which can be used to identify areas for student
development.
Reading Guide
Each of the novels has its own student Reading
Guide – an accessible, magazine-style booklet,
packed with visual, textual and activity materials
to help engage students in their study of the
novel. Each one features writer’s craft material
to enhance and enrich the students’ appreciation
of the author’s skills. Original drafts and
commentary from the authors of the novels
provide valuable insight into the process of
writing.
Ideas for wider reading and for the extension of
independent reading are provided in the
Pathways section at the end of the Reading
Guide.
Oxford Rollercoasters provides first-class
teaching resources for first-class contemporary
fiction. The series is designed to engage the
widest possible range of students in reading for
pleasure, and we feel confident that it will
contribute to those memorable experiences of
reading together in the secondary classroom.
OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Overview
OVERVIEW FOR SCHEME OF WORK
Lesson and focus
Reading skills and strategies
Resources
1. Story opening
Chapter 1
(Homework Chapter 2)
Appreciate an effective story opening
Make deductions about the book from its cover and predict plot
and character development
R: 1a, 1b
RG: p.4
2. Developing character and
exploring structure
Chapters 3–4
Interpret information about characters and structure
Define suspense
Explore characters through role-play
R: 2a, 2b
RG: p.8
3. Characterization and dialogue
Chapters 5–6
(Homework Chapter 7)
Understand how authors create characters
Explore dialogue
R: 3a, 3b
RG: p.6
4. Creating suspense and mystery
Chapters 8–9
(Homework Chapter 10)
Identify methods to create suspense
Locate examples of the mystery genre
Understand how clues are planted in the story
R: 4a, 4b
RG: pp.7, 8
5. Setting
Chapters 11–12
Select and interpret information relating to settings
Plan an original piece of writing based on a setting
R: 5a, 5b, 5c, 5d
RG: p.5
6. The role of foxes as a motif
Chapters 13–14
Explore motifs
Debate how foxes are perceived
R: 6a, 6b
RG: p.3,10
7. Deceptive appearances
Chapters 15–16
(Homework Chapters 17–19)
Identify how the novelist uses the themes of deception and
appearances
Understand the importance of the character, Mo
R: 7a, 7b
RG: p.12
8. Creating a trailer to explore
genre
Chapters 20–21
Define ‘genre’
Select key exciting episodes from the text
Use media terminology to create a trailer storyboard
R: 8a, 8b, 8c
RG: p.9
9. Tension and crisis
Chapters 22–23
(Homework Chapters 24–26)
Explore the build-up of tension
Chart the tension in two key chapters
R: 9a, 9b
RG: p.13
(optional)
10. The resolution
Chapters 27–28
(Homework Chapter 29)
Reflect on key aspects of the narrative structure
Understand the resolution of the plot
Explore implications and inferences about a character
R: 10a, 10b, 10c
11. Writer’s craft
Whole novel
Understand aspects of the writer’s craft
Explore different writing techniques
R: 11a, 11b, 11c
RG: p.14
12. Review and reflect
Whole novel
Express and share personal responses to the novel
Review learning
R: 12a, 12b,
12c, 12d
Progression: teachers’ choice of this text should be influenced by the degree to which the study of
Buried Thunder will allow a class to make appropriate progress in their knowledge and skills of
reading. Buried Thunder offers students the opportunity to examine a story which deals with themes
such as friendship, loss and danger.
Cross-curricular links: opportunities to link with PSHE, Media, ICT and Drama.
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
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Navigator
NAVIGATOR
Chapter
Plot outline
Chapter 1
Fourteen-year-old Maya Munro discovers a woman’s body in the forest. There is a horseshoe
pendant around the woman’s neck. Maya hears mysterious rustlings and then discovers a redhaired man’s body. Finally she sees a third body with a figure standing over it. She also sees a
fox. She runs from the forest and collapses.
Chapter 2
Maya comes to and finds her worried family looking for her. She tells them what she has seen
and her father calls the police. The Munro family returns to the Rowan Tree, an ancient hotel they
have recently purchased. Maya’s brother, Tom, confronts Maya about her odd behaviour before
she ran into the forest and tells her that she said ‘Someone’s going to die.’ A policewoman
arrives at the door. It is the woman whom Maya saw lying dead in the forest.
Chapter 3
The policewoman is WPC Annie Shaw. The other police officers arrive and question Maya. The
police have found no evidence to support Maya’s story and do not believe her.
Chapter 4
At night, Tom tells Maya that he doesn’t trust WPC Shaw because he saw her searching the
reception area when she thought no one was looking. Maya goes downstairs to see if she can
discover what WPC Shaw was looking for. She discovers a horseshoe pendant, the same one
worn by the body in the forest. Maya hides the pendant in a secret cupboard beneath her
bedroom floorboards.
Chapter 5
The next morning, Maya is struggling with the busy breakfast orders. A ‘wild’ girl, Bonny turns up
at the door asking for a job. She has a strange, large, silent boy, Mo, with her. Bonny sends the
boy to wait for her by the church. Although surprised by Bonny’s manner, Maya’s father agrees to
give her a trial shift. Maya goes to the churchyard.
Chapter 6
In the churchyard, Maya meets Zep and they see a dead fox. Zep has a knife and seems
threatening. A woman, Rebecca Flint, warns Maya to keep away from Zep. Bonny comes looking
for Mo. Mrs Flint tells Maya that she never intends to go inside the Rowan Tree again.
Chapter 7
Maya tells Tom there is something wrong with the Rowan Tree. He thinks she needs to face the
forest again. She goes to retrieve the horseshoe pendant, but discovers a wooden effigy in its
place. She decides to dispose of the effigy in the forest. Maya sees a man with red hair.
Chapter 8
Maya and Tom go into the forest. She is looking for the red-haired man, and somewhere to throw
away the effigy. Zep and a mysterious teenage girl emerge from the bushes where Maya has
thrown the effigy. The girl leaves and Zep shows them a savagely cut tree trunk. Tom attempts to
protect Maya. Zep leaves and they see the man with red hair.
Chapter 9
Maya and Tom meet McMurdo, the forester, and Bryn, the red-haired man who is McMurdo’s
assistant. Maya asks who is responsible for the carved tree and dead foxes. Bryn asks what the
red-haired man Maya had seen dead in the forest had looked like. She describes his clothes,
which are like Bryn’s, but says he had a silver watch, which Bryn doesn’t have. McMurdo warns
Maya against telling ‘fantasy stories’. They see Bonny, running through the forest. They come
upon Mo near three carved trees standing over the corpse of a fox. He runs away, chased by
McMurdo and Bryn.
Chapter 10
That night Maya can’t sleep because she keeps hearing noises, particularly a scratching at her
door. She goes to her parents’ room and her father goes out to explore. Hearing him say ‘Who’s
there?’ her mother goes out as well. Maya hears more scratching and screams.
Chapter 11
Dr Wade comes to examine Maya. The Munros have hired three new staff, two 16 year olds,
Roxy and Jake, and Milly, ‘a fierce-looking’ woman. Bonny objects to the new recruitment,
accusing the Munros of sacking her. The police turn up wanting to find Mo. Bonny runs off.
Chapter 12
Jake’s parents used to own the Rowan Tree and so Jake shows Maya and Tom around it. His
uncle is McMurdo. Jake admits the hotel is an unhappy place and the marriage of the previous
owners, the Flints, broke up. He tells them there are secret cupboards in the attic and broom
cupboard.
Chapter 13
Maya follows a fox into the garden. Roxy joins her, asking why Maya is talking to herself. Maya
worries that she is frightening all the hotel guests away. She feels the fox is summoning her from
behind the garden wall. The Munros worry about business, but are glad they have one restaurant
booking: Bryn and Annie Shaw are coming for dinner the next day.
Chapter 14
At night, Maya follows a fox that she has seen digging outside. She is convinced it is trying to
communicate with her. She goes outside and sees that its digging has revealed a human foot.
She then sees a figure with a fox’s face rising from the bushes.
Chapter 15
The figure dressed in fox fur runs tauntingly at her. It is Zep and he pushes against her. Zep
suddenly runs away and Maya sees that Mo is there. She thanks him. He is waiting for Bonny.
Chapter 16
Bonny arrives with food for Mo. Bonny agrees to walk Maya back to the Rowan Tree in return for
her silence about the old barn that Mo and Bonny use as a retreat. She says they have enemies
and that evil things are going on. Mo is innocent, but has been attacked and hit. When they
return to the Rowan Tree, the police are there.
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Navigator
Chapter
Plot outline
Chapter 17
Annie Shaw interviews Maya and the body is identified as being Rebecca Flint’s. Maya is quizzed
about her last conversation with Mrs Flint. Zep is considered a suspect. The police suggest that
they stop running the hotel for a while, but Annie Shaw asks if they can still come for dinner as it
is a special place to them and she thinks Bryn is going to ask her ‘something important’. Maya
says ‘Don’t come.’
Chapter 18
Maya’s mother tells her that with a murderer on the loose she can’t go running off again. Maya
knows she can’t convince her mother that she saw the bodies in the forest and she now wonders
if what she saw has a more sinister meaning. Maya hears a scratching at the door again.
Chapter 19
The police and press arrive in the morning to investigate Mrs Flint’s murder. Maya is grounded.
Maya tells Tom again ‘Someone’s going to die.’ Jake tells Maya and Tom that Zep and Mrs Flint
were in a relationship although he was only 19 and she was in her 40s. Mrs Flint was lonely after
her husband had left her for another woman and so she let Zep stay in her outhouse.
Chapter 20
Jake comes to check if Maya is all right. He feels Maya knows something she isn’t telling him and
he says he is angry with whoever killed Mrs Flint. Maya hears a growling from behind a door. She
shuts herself in a room and thinks that she is being hunted. When she goes downstairs she sees
that two dinner guests have arrived in the Rowan Tree restaurant.
Chapter 21
Bryn and Annie are seated in the restaurant dressed just as they were when she saw them as
bodies in the forest – except Annie isn’t wearing the horseshoe pendant and Bryn doesn’t have a
silver watch. Maya tells them they shouldn’t have come. Tom asks Maya if she thinks he is the
one who is going to die. She replies that she doesn’t know. Tom falls ill and a doctor is called.
After Bryn and Annie leave, Maya’s father becomes ill. He tells Maya that Annie is happy
because they found her horseshoe pendant for her and Annie gave Bryn a silver watch. Maya
sees two figures walking hand in hand to the forest and a fox looking at her.
Chapter 22
Maya feels the fox is beckoning her to come outside. Maya’s mother falls ill. Although forbidden
from going outside, Maya follows the fox. Someone places a garbage bag over her head and she
is bundled away. She hears a moan and removes the bag. She finds Mo bending over an injured
Bonny. Mo had brought Maya as the only other person he trusted, hoping she could help with
Bonny. Mo suddenly runs off and Maya finds Annie and Bryn’s bodies just as they were in her
first visit to the forest. Then she finds Mo, badly hurt, and realizes he was the third body and she
was the figure standing over the body. A fifth figure dressed in fox furs arrives and pulls an axe
from a tree.
Chapter 23
The fox figure wields the axe and Maya is hit in the cheek with its handle. Mo tries to stop the fox
figure but just as he weakens someone else hits the fox figure. Maya discovers that the fox figure
isn’t Zep, and in fact it is Zep who has felled the fox figure. Zep runs off and Maya checks the
pulses of Annie and Bryn. Maya sees a fox and then torches drawing near.
Chapter 24
Dr Wade looks after Maya and tells her that her family had been poisoned by a home-made
mixture, but they would survive. The others in the forest had been taken to the hospital. Bonny
had been poisoned too. The police reveal that Rebecca Flint was poisoned. The police cannot
yet tell them who the fox figure is.
Chapter 25
Maya tells Roxy and Jake that she thinks the fox figure has been haunting the Rowan Tree and
living there. They go in search of possible hiding places. They find loose floorboards and an old
chimneybreast. Maya is convinced that the fox figure has been in her room and possibly the
cellar.
Chapter 26
In the cellar, they find a window with a broken latch. Maya senses a hostile presence there. She
goes up to check on her ill family. The police come and ask Maya and Jake to accompany them.
Chapter 27
The police take Jake and Maya to the hospital. They see Mo and Bonny recovering. They are
told that Bryn and Annie may recover in time for their wedding. McMurdo reveals to Jake that he
isn’t an only child. His mother Chloe had an affair with a 19-year-old Bryn and became pregnant.
Jake’s father died and his mother, who was unstable, was found 13 years later living under a
bridge. She died and no one knew what happened to her child. That child was the fox figure.
Chapter 28
They are taken to see a young girl, Crystal, who was the fox figure. She was the girl who had
been with Zep in the bushes. She is psychotic and wanted revenge on everyone involved with
the Rowan Tree, particularly Bryn, her father. She was manipulating Zep, but when she killed Mrs
Flint, he went after Crystal. Maya says ‘Someone’s going to die’ and Crystal stops breathing.
Chapter 29
Maya’s family is recovering. A guest calls to make a reservation at the Rowan Tree. Jake and
Milly return home. Maya checks the hotel. When she looks out the window she sees two yellow
eyes peering in.
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Lesson 1
LESSON 1
Focus: Chapter 1
Effective story openings
(Homework Chapter 2)
Learning outcomes
Students will be able to:
 Appreciate a story opening and comment
on how this story introduces the characters
 Make deductions about the book from its
cover and predict plot
 Explore the importance of sound in creating
a sense of mystery and suspense
Engage
Distribute copies of Buried Thunder. Ask the
students to look carefully at the cover and then
consider the statements on Resource 1a. This
resource can be displayed in front of the class or
copied and distributed to pairs of students. Ask
the students to rank the statements in order,
putting the ones they most agree with at the top
and the ones they least agree with at the
bottom. (The statements can be cut out and
physically rearranged if preferred.)
Take feedback from the class. Encourage the
students to explain how they made their choices.
Finally, ask them to sum up their first
impressions of the book.
ability pairs for this exercise to support those who
may have been confused by the opening.) After
the students have selected three important events
that create suspense, ask three or four pairs to
feedback on their decisions, encouraging them to
explain why they made those choices.
Transform
Ask the class to consider the importance of
sound in creating suspense. Ask them to identify
the sounds that are both explicit (such as the
rustling) and implicit (such as the sound of
Maya’s breathing as she rushes through the
forest) in the opening. On the board note their
suggestions, which may include: Maya’s
footsteps, wind, owls, Tom’s shouting, etc.
Divide the class into three groups and assign
one person to be the ‘conductor’. Using the
suggested sounds and the guidance on page 4
of the Reading Guide, the students should
create a soundscape which captures the
excitement of the opening chapter. More
advanced groups might want to add some
narration or movement to their soundscape.
Allow the students to rehearse for about five
minutes, with the conductor controlling the
volume and pace of the piece, as well as
bringing in and silencing various sounds. Share
with the class and discuss the importance of
sound in this opening.
Review and reflect
Explore
Read pages 1 and 2 in the novel and then
display Resource 1b. Ask the students to work
in pairs, and to think about how the selected
phrases create interest in the novel and a desire
to know what is going to happen next. Ask:
 Do the words help the reader to understand
how Maya is feeling?
 Do they plant questions in the reader’s mind?
 Do they help to create atmosphere or a
sense of danger?
Make connections between the type of novel
suggested by the students’ analysis of the cover
and the first two pages. Then read to the end of
the first chapter and discuss their first
impressions of the novel.
Distribute the Reading Guide and ask students to
turn to page 4, ‘A Hint of Danger’. Working with a
partner they should complete the first task, looking
at the events in the novel. This is an opportunity to
check the understanding of less able students.
(You may wish to organize the students into mixed
Return to your discussion about the book cover
and ask the students if their initial ideas about
the effectiveness of the cover have changed
now that they have read the beginning of the
novel. Ask them whether they would now put
their statements in a different order.
Distribute sticky notes and ask the students to
make predictions about what they think will
happen next in the novel. Collect these in and
read out a few, without suggesting if they are
correct or not. Keep these to refer back to in a
later lesson.
Homework
Ask the students to read the next chapter in the
novel (pages 7–15) and to answer the following
question: What do we learn about Maya and her
family in the second chapter?
Tell students that it will be tempting to read on
but ask them to stop reading at the end of the
second chapter.
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
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Lesson 1
Resource 1a
Book cover
Look at the front and back cover of Buried Thunder and read the statements below.
Decide whether you agree or disagree with them, and be prepared to explain why.
Rank them in order, marking the one you most agree with as 1 and the one you least
agree with as 8.
The colours suggest danger.
The book is about a forest.
The cover suggests that a girl is in danger.
The cover image is rather frightening.
The word ‘nightmare’ makes me wonder if it is all in a
character’s mind.
The story takes place in the country.
The phrase ‘the eyes of a fox’ sounds mysterious.
The phrase ‘horrific discovery’ makes me think the
book will be exciting.
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
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Lesson 1
Resource 1b
Capturing the reader’s attention
Explain how the following phrases from the opening two pages capture the reader’s
attention.
‘The body was lying
in a thicket’
‘a ghost of
recollection’
‘And yet...’
‘the darkening
forest’
‘a rustling sound’
‘starting to panic’
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 2
LESSON 2
Focus: Chapters 3–4
Developing character and exploring structure
Learning outcomes
Students will be able to:
 Select and interpret information about
characters and relationships
 Define and explore cliff-hangers and
suspense
 Explore characters through role-play
Engage
Display the sticky note predictions from the first
lesson and ask two or three volunteers to come
up and see if any of these predictions can now
be eliminated by what they have learned in the
second chapter. Remove those that the class
agrees could not be correct.
Invite students to share their responses to the
homework question about what they have
learned about the Munro family. Ask one third of
the class to come up with adjectives to describe
each of the following family members:
 Tom
 Maya’s mum
 Maya’s dad.
Take whole-class feedback on Maya’s
relationship with each of these characters.
Hand out the Reading Guides and ask the
students to turn to page 8. Draw their attention
to the definition of ‘suspense’. Ask them to read
the different thoughts about why suspense is
important and ask which most closely matches
their own. Ask: How has further suspense been
created in these two chapters?
Transform
Ask the students to remember what Maya has
told the police about what happened in the
forest. Put them into groups of three (or four with
one director) and ask them to create a role-play
scene in which three of the police officers return
to the police station and try to make sense of
what Maya has told them.
Hand out Resource 2b to give the students
guidance about how they could play their parts.
Remind them that they should base their ideas
on what the police might actually think of what
Maya has told them.
Give the students about ten minutes to rehearse
their scenes and then choose two or three to
share with the rest of the class. Ask the students
to check that the actors playing the police have
been accurately portrayed from the information
available from the novel.
Discuss how Maya’s situation would be different
if the police believed her.
Review and reflect
Explore
Display and/or distribute Resource 2a. Read
through the definition of a ‘cliff-hanger’ and
ensure students understand this term. Ask the
students to compare the cliff-hangers that end
the first two chapters. (They can work in pairs.)
Encourage the more advanced students to
attempt the extension task of writing their own
alternative cliff-hanger to end Chapter 2. Ask
them to predict what might happen next.
Ask the students to list all the questions they
now have about the events in Hembury. (For
example, what is the importance of the
horseshoe pendant? Why does WPC Annie
Shaw look like the dead person?)
Homework
Write a script showing what you think Tom
would tell his parents about Maya’s behaviour in
the forest.
Read Chapters 3 and 4 (pages 16–29), checking
the students’ comprehension as they progress.
Draw out that the police are sceptical about
Maya’s story and that Tom is protective of her.
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
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Lesson 2
Resource 2a
Cliff-hangers
Cliff-hanger an exciting but unfinished event that
occurs at the end of a chapter or episode
Final line of
each chapter
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
‘And a shadow
leaning over her.’
‘It was the woman
she’d seen lying
dead in the forest.’
What questions
does this
sentence
suggest to you?
What do you
think might
happen next?
Extension task: Look again at the end of Chapter 2 and write
an alternative cliff-hanger.
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
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Lesson 2
Resource 2b
Detective role-play
Use the role-play cards below to develop a scene in which DI Henderson, DC Coker
and WPC Becket have returned to the police station and try to find alternative
explanations for what Maya claims to have seen in the woods.
DI Henderson
 You are a very experienced detective.
 You don’t believe Maya is lying, but that she is mistaken in what
she has seen.
 You try to think of logical explanations for what she has said.
DC Coker
 You are a younger detective constable and you want to solve
this case quickly.
 You are impatient with time-wasters.
 You are very aware that the Munros are new to this area.
WPC Becket
 You are the least experienced of the three police officers.
 You are very curious about why Maya would make these claims.
 You wonder if something bad has happened in the forest.
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
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Lesson 3
LESSON 3
Transform
Focus: Chapters 5–6
Characterization and dialogue
(Homework Chapter 7)
Learning outcomes
Students will be able to:
 Understand how authors create characters
 Explore how dialogue can be written
effectively
Engage
Hand out the Reading Guide and ask the
students to turn to page 6, ‘The Girl No One
Believes’. Working in pairs they should look at
all the adjectives at the bottom of the page and
decide which they believe best describe Maya.
Then ask one person from each pair to write one
adjective on the whiteboard which describes
Maya. Encourage them to think of any other
adjectives which are not listed in the Reading
Guide and explain why they would also be
appropriate for describing Maya.
Ask the students to consider whether Maya is
perceived differently by different characters
(Tom, for example, as opposed to DI
Henderson).
Explore
Ask for a few volunteers to read their homework
assignment, encouraging the class to note in
particular the quality of the dialogue. Display
Resource 3a to help focus the discussion. Ask
the students to comment on what works well in
the dialogue and what could be improved.
Then ask the students to read pages 30–39,
paying particular attention to the dialogue used
in this chapter.
Continue to read until the end of Chapter 6,
reminding the class to pay attention to the
quality of the dialogue and what we learn about
the characters.
Return to the Reading Guide, page 6, and direct
the class to read from the top of the page,
including the sample stories.
Organize the students into pairs and ask them to
decide whether Maya is more like Cassandra or
the Boy Who Cried Wolf. Encourage them to
justify their opinions.
Distribute Resource 3b and ask the students to
complete the characterization chart. Circulate
around the room, prompting students to justify
their opinions and to give detailed evidence
(quotations) from the novel.
For an extension, encourage the more able to
contrast two of the characters. You could write
on the board: ‘In contrast to Bonny, Zep appears
to be...’ and ask students to complete this
sentence.
Review and reflect
Return to the adjectives that the class discussed
at the beginning of the lesson and point out the
definition of ‘protagonist’ in the Reading Guide,
page 6. Play ‘Just a Minute’ giving students a
chance to say in 60 seconds, without pause,
hesitation or repetition, why they think Maya is
an interesting protagonist.
Homework
Ask the students to read pages 48–55 and to
write down three questions they want to know
the answers to at the end of this chapter (for
example, ‘Who is Mo?’, ‘Why does Zep have a
knife?’, ‘What is an effigy?’).
Then re-direct their attention to Resource 3a.
Ask three students to re-read the dialogue
between Bonny, Maya and Mr Munro on pages
33–37 and consider how the dialogue is
individual to each character. They should then
complete the statement at the bottom of
Resource 3a.
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 3
Resource 3a
Analysing dialogue
dialogue words spoken between two or more characters
sub-text underlying, unspoken meaning of a scene or words
What makes good dialogue?
1. It helps to further the action of the plot.
2. The words spoken suit the characters and reveal something
about their personality.
3. It is easy to follow – we know who is speaking and why.
4. It may suggest that there is more to the scene than just what
is being said (i.e. it may imply a certain sub-text).
5. It is believable – the choice of words and phrases are
appropriate for that given character.
6. It might catch us by surprise – amusing, shocking or
intriguing us.
Read the dialogue involving Bonny on pages 33–37 and decide
if you think this dialogue is well written and why.
Complete the following statement:
What I have learned about Bonny from her dialogue is...
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 3
Resource 3b
Comparing characters
Maya
Bonny
Zep
Dialogue
What do we
learn about this
character from
the way they
speak and what
they say?
Give examples.
Appearance
What do we
learn from the
way they look
and dress?
Actions
What do we
learn from what
they do?
Reactions
What do we
learn from how
others react to
them?
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 4
LESSON 4
Focus: Chapters 8–9
Creating suspense and mystery
(Homework Chapter 10)
Learning outcomes
Students will be able to:
 Identify methods the author uses to create
suspense
 Locate examples of the mystery genre
 Understand how clues are planted in the
story
Note: There are some references to nudity
and sex in this chapter which should be
dealt with sensitively.
Engage
Ask the students to share the questions they
had after reading Chapter 7 at home. Then
distribute the Reading Guide and tell them to
turn to page 7, ‘Secret Objects’. Check their
understanding of the word ‘effigy’. It is likely
this word will cause some confusion, so ask a
student to look up and write the definition on
the board (something like ‘a model or
representation of a figure’). Then ask the
students to complete the first two tasks on
page 7 of the Reading Guide, looking at the
secret objects and speculating on the
significance of the contents of Zep’s bag.
Then ask the students to read to the end of
Chapter 9.
Transform
Using the ‘Baffling object’ exercise on page 7
of the Reading Guide as a stimulus, ask the
students to create their own suspenseful
opening to a mystery story. They should use
the techniques that have been discussed in
this lesson such as creating atmosphere,
planting clues and keeping the reader
guessing.
Allow them 10–15 minutes to write, and then
choose two or three students to read out their
work to the class. Encourage the class to
analyse how suspense, mystery and
atmosphere have been created.
Review and reflect
Return to the Reading Guide and turn to page
8, ‘The Suspense Builds’. First read Tim
Bowler’s writer’s craft section on suspense and
then ask the students to read the speech
bubble comments on suspense. Ask for hands
up to establish which one they most agree with
and then invite one or two students to explain
why.
Homework
Complete a final, neat version of the opening
to their baffling object mystery. They should
also read Chapter 10.
Take feedback from the whole class on their
discoveries, encouraging them to speculate on
the possible meaning of the clues.
Explore
Before continuing to read, display Resource
4a. Discuss the key terms about suspense and
mystery.
Read pages 56–62 asking the students to pay
particular attention to any clues that the writer
is planting.
Distribute Resource 4b and ask the students
to analyse the clues on it, encouraging them to
predict the possible meanings and to make
connections with events that have occurred
already in the novel. Keep Resource 4a on
display, so the students can use this
vocabulary in their answers.
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 4
Resource 4a
Terms used in mysteries and thrillers
Mystery: a fiction genre which involves the solving of a crime
Psychological thriller: a fiction genre which focuses on the
feelings and fears of the characters. The suspense may come
from characters trying to understand what has happened to
them or attempting to make sense of confusing or disturbing
events.
Clues: information or hints that help to solve a problem or
mystery. This might be physical evidence (a weapon, for
example) or something witnessed. Writers often plant a number
of clues for the reader to try to connect and solve the mystery.
Suspense: a state of tension when waiting to learn the
outcome of a situation or decision. In literature, this is
associated with excitement and involvement for the reader.
Red herring: a false clue – something that you think might help
you solve a mystery, but actually draws you away from the
solution. Writers sometimes plant these to add confusion and
tease the reader.
Atmosphere: the mood created by the writer; for example,
eerie, calm or gloomy. This is usually created by the setting,
description and dialogue.
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 4
Resource 4b
Close reading
Read the following quotations from Chapter 8 and, writing in full sentences, explain
how they contribute to the suspense and mystery of Buried Thunder.
Hint: Do they help you solve the mystery or create a greater mystery? Can you make
connections with earlier events in the novel? Do any of these lines contribute to the
atmosphere of this chapter?
‘You’re acting strange. And you’ve still got that weird face.’
‘...but now a second figure was stirring from the bushes: a girl about fifteen.’
‘And if you eat the heart, you capture its strength.’
‘Something was stirring in the leaves ahead, and it wasn’t Zep.’
‘…two yellow eyes, staring towards her.’
‘The bark on the side facing them had been savagely cut back to form a shape in the
tree-trunk as broad and tall as Zep himself.’
‘Zep smirked again, then suddenly turned his head and stared behind him.’
‘And unmistakable red hair.’
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 5
LESSON 5
Focus: Chapters 11–12
The importance of settings
Learning outcomes
Students will be able to:
 Select and interpret information relating to
settings
 Create a plan for an original piece of
writing based on a setting
Engage
Distribute Resource 5a and ask the students
to answer true or false to the questions about
the setting in Buried Thunder. Those who
finish quickly should also complete the
extension task of considering which points add
most to the mystery of the novel.
Ask the students to exchange papers and then
display Resource 5b.Tell the students to mark
each other’s answers. Invite a show of hands
of those who got more than eight correct and
try to identify any areas of confusion.
Explore
Distribute the Reading Guide and ask the
students to turn to page 5, ‘The Mystery of The
Rowan Tree’. Together read the writer’s craft
passage in which Tim Bowler describes the
importance of the setting in the novel. Refer
the students to the spider diagram in the
middle of the page. Working with a partner,
students should copy and complete the spider
diagram using evidence from the novel so far.
They must be able to back up their ideas with
quotations from the novel.
Ask one student to read the passage aloud.
Draw attention to the use of some unusually
short sentences followed by longer, more
complex ones and, for the more able, define
the word ‘syntax’ (it is the way in which words
are arranged to make phrases or sentences).
The students should then work independently
annotating their copy of the resource sheet,
and most should also be able to complete the
extension task.
When they have completed the resource
sheet, ask the students to share their
discoveries and draw out how Bowler uses
sound, short sentences and Maya’s fears and
discomfort to create a sense of suspense.
Transform
Using ideas from today’s lesson the students
should make a plan for a story set in a specific
location. Distribute Resource 5d. Working
independently, ask the students to write for
about ten minutes on their plans, reminding
them of the importance of using their senses.
Review and reflect
Hear a selection of the students’ plans and,
referring back to the writer’s craft material, ask
them to decide if they have chosen a setting
that is so exciting and interesting that it will be
‘like another character’ in the story. Tell the
students to keep these plans safe as they will
return to creative writing in another lesson.
Homework
Ask the students to research foxes and how
they are perceived by society nowadays. They
should list five positive points and five negative
ones.
Read pages 78–93, encouraging the students
to note the ways in which the Rowan Tree is
being established as an important aspect of
the novel’s narrative.
Distribute Resource 5c which contains an
extract from pages 92–93 in the novel. Explain
that the students will be undertaking a close
reading of this section. Ideally they should
have coloured pencils or pens for this exercise,
but if not they should simply circle or underline
the different elements and annotate the text to
explain what they have discovered.
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19
OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 5
True
False
Resource 5a
True or false?
1. Maya has lived in Hembury all
her life.
2. The Rowan Tree is an old country
hotel.
3. Hembury is a busy urban setting.
4. There is a church and graveyard in
Hembury.
5. Maya feels immediately at home at the
Rowan Tree.
6. There is a secret cupboard underneath
the floor in Maya’s bedroom.
7. Maya hears a barking at her bedroom
door.
8. The Rowan Tree is a very successful
hotel.
9. There is a forest near the hotel.
10. Mrs Flint has happy memories of the
Rowan Tree.
Extension: Which of the above do you think particularly adds to the
mystery and atmosphere of the novel?
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 5
True
False
Resource 5b
True or false: answers
1. Maya has lived in Hembury all her life.
Her family only moved in a few days before the novel
begins.
2. The Rowan Tree is an old country
hotel.
It dates from the 14th century.
3. Hembury is a busy urban setting.
It is a quiet country (rural) location.
4. There is a church and graveyard in
Hembury.
5. Maya feels immediately at home at the
Rowan Tree.
Her parents and brother love it, but she feels ill at
ease.
6. There is a secret cupboard underneath
the floor in Maya’s bedroom.
7. Maya hears a barking at her bedroom
door.
She hears a scratching.
8. The Rowan Tree is a very successful
hotel.
Her parents need to build up the business.
9. There is a forest near the hotel.
10. Mrs Flint has happy memories of the
Rowan Tree.
She never wants to set foot in it again.
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 5
Resource 5c
Close reading
How does Tim Bowler use the setting to create suspense in the following extract?
1. In one colour, underline any short abrupt sentences.
2. In another colour, underline any mention of sounds or silence.
3. In a third colour, circle any time Maya’s feelings or fears are mentioned.
4. Circle any words you associate with mystery.
She set off down the corridor.
A rest in her room.
She frowned. She hadn’t been in there since she left it
last night. She walked up to the door, stared at it for a few
moments, then turned away; and there it was again: that
feeling of something dangerous and familiar.
And close.
She walked back down the corridor. All was quiet in
The Rowan Tree, especially now that the guests had gone,
but from the attic room above came the sound of Tom and
Jake laughing. She moved on down the corridor.
The feeling was still there and it was strongest towards
the back of the hotel. She stopped outside Room Seven,
listening hard. No further laughter from the attic room, nor
any other voices. She pushed open the door, stepped in
and closed it behind her, then walked over to the window.
Nothing suspicious in the garden: just the lawn, the
path, the empty tables. She heard the door open behind
her. She whirled around and saw Milly standing there.
Extension: Using what you have discovered by analysing this passage, complete the
following sentence:
Tim Bowler creates an eerie atmosphere in The Rowan Tree by...
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 5
Resource 5d
Creating a powerful setting
Choose a location, for example:
a leisure centre
a school
a shopping mall
a museum
Now imagine you have been trapped here overnight. Think carefully
about all your senses. What would you:
 see
 hear
 feel?
Write a story plan following the steps below.
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23
OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 6
LESSON 6
Focus: Chapters 13–14
The role of foxes as a motif
Learning outcomes
Students will be able to:
 Explain what a motif is and to what effect
the fox motif is used in this novel
 Discuss how foxes are used in literature
 Debate how foxes are generally perceived
Engage
Ask one student to write the word ‘Foxes’ on the
whiteboard and, using their homework and their
own knowledge, invite the class to help that
student write as many bullet points as he or she
can in two minutes about foxes. Encourage
them to be imaginative and to think about foxes
in fiction as well as fact.
Explore
Display Resource 6a and ask a student to read
the definition of ‘motif’. Check the students’
understanding of the term and then guide them
through the quotations about foxes in the novel.
Encourage them to discuss whether the images
are positive or negative.
They should then read Chapters 13 and 14 in
the novel, noting down every time foxes are
mentioned. When they have finished reading,
the students should work with a partner to
compare their lists, making sure they haven’t
missed any instances. Then, still in pairs, the
students should discuss why foxes are
mentioned so often and what they might
represent or symbolize.
Distribute the Reading Guide and ask the
students to turn to page 3. Read what Tim
Bowler says about the foxes and how they
inspired him. Encourage the class to discuss the
points Bowler makes about foxes and how the
image of the staring fox helped him to write the
story.
Put the class into groups of five and distribute
Resource 6b. You may wish to simply
photocopy this sheet six times and cut it into
sections, and then cut off the top section, so
every group has a single Fox Fact File and each
individual has a debate card. If you have mixed
ability groups, you may wish to appoint a more
able student with leadership skills as the
moderator for each group and ask him/her to
oversee each individual’s debate preparation.
Each student should use his/her homework
research, plus the fact file and other information
they may have, to write an opening speech from
the point of view of his or her debate character.
After they have completed this preparation, the
groups should debate the issue using the
following format:
1. Moderator introduction of topic and
speakers. (1 minute)
2. Speakers alternate for and against foxes.
(1 minute each)
3. Moderator allows speakers to question and
challenge each other’s point of view.
(5 minutes)
4. Moderator invites questions from the
audience for the speakers. (2 minutes)
5. Moderator closes discussion and asks for a
show of hands whether the class feels that
foxes are foes to society. (1 minute)
There will not be time to see every group in this
lesson, so choose a group that has worked well
to share with the class or, alternatively, set aside
a separate lesson for a Speaking and Listening
assessment based on this exercise.
Review and reflect
Return to the words that had been put on the
board at the beginning of the lesson and ask a
student to come and circle any words which help
to explain why Tim Bowler has used foxes as a
motif in Buried Thunder. Invite the class to
suggest more words for the board, following
their debate and discussion.
Transform
Homework
Ask the class to turn to page 10 in the Reading
Guide, ‘Those Yellow Eyes…’, and together,
read the section about the reputation of foxes
and the topic for the debate.
Read ‘The Thought Fox’ on page 10 of the
Reading Guide and write down any connections
you can make between the foxes in that poem
and those in Buried Thunder.
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24
OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 6
Resource 6a
The fox motif
motif a symbol, element or image which recurs in a story.
symbol something which stands for or represents
something else.
A symbol may only occur once in a text, but a motif
re-occurs throughout.
Chapter 1
‘Two yellow eyes, watching her; and now a head, and a body.
Then she saw what it was.
A fox.’
Chapter 2
‘All that came was another image – of yellow eyes drawing her
into the trees: the way the owl had flown.’
Chapter 6
‘Lying on the grass was a dead fox, or part of a dead fox.’
‘...she could see the fox’s mutilated form inside. It was twisted in
such a way that the dead face would have stared out at her,
had it been there.’
Chapter 8
‘Who’s killing the foxes?’ she said. ‘And mutilating them.’
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 6
Resource 6b
Fox debate
FACT FILE: Foxes in Britain
Name: The scientific name of a fox is Vulpes vulpes.
Foxes are members of the dog family.
Size: The average fox weighs between 4 and 8
kilogrammes and is a little larger than a pet cat.
Appearance: Usually a reddish coat with a white or
grey throat and belly; pointed ears and long muzzle.
The tail or ‘brush’ makes up roughly a third of the
fox’s total length.
Habitat: Due to their adaptability, they can be found throughout the Northern
Hemisphere. There are both urban and rural foxes. There are roughly 250,000 adult
foxes in Britain, with the majority living in rural locations.
Life Expectancy: Captive foxes can live up to 14 years, but in the wild, they rarely
live for more than a couple of years.
Debate topic: ‘Foxes are foes to society and therefore all means to protect people
and livestock from them should be allowed, including hunting and culling.’
Role 1
You live in the countryside and believe that all living creatures are beautiful and
should not be destroyed or hunted. You feel foxes are unfairly blamed for damage
to livestock.
Role 2
You live in the city and are frightened by urban foxes. You have heard stories of
foxes entering houses and causing damage and injury. You believe they should all
be captured and returned to the countryside.
Role 3
You live in the countryside and believe that the tradition of hunting foxes is a good
one. You believe that it is a strong country tradition, an enjoyable sport and
protects livestock.
Role 4
You are interested in wildlife and work for a society which protects and helps
injured animals, including foxes. You think that foxes should be kept away from
houses, but that they should also be protected and not trapped or culled.
Role 5
You are the moderator of this discussion. It is your responsibility to make sure that
everyone gets a chance to speak and to reply to questions. You will start the
debate by introducing the topic and speakers. You should conclude by inviting
questions from the audience.
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 7
LESSON 7
Transform
Focus: Chapters 15–16
(Homework Chapters 17–19)
Deceptive appearances
Learning outcomes
Students will be able to:
 Identify how the novelist uses the themes
of deception and appearances in the novel
 Understand the importance of Mo and how
he is portrayed
Engage
Distribute and/or display Resource 7a and ask
the students to create a spider diagram which
explores all the reasons why someone might
want to disguise his or her appearance. (For
example, they are going to a fancy dress party;
they are criminals; they don’t like how they look,
etc.) Give the students three minutes to come up
with as many reasons as they can. Feedback
and lead the class on to the idea of how
appearances can be misleading.
Distribute the Reading Guide and ask the
students to read ‘The Silent Boy: Mo’ on
page 12.
Ask them to work in pairs to complete the roleplay exercise in which they create a scene
between Mo and a social worker. You may need
to explain the role of a social worker and what
information Bonny has provided about Mo’s
background.
Circulate around the room and encourage
students to engage empathetically with Mo’s life
and troubles.
Invite a few students to share their work with the
rest of the class, encouraging sympathetic
reactions. If students are confident enough, they
could engage in a hot-seating exercise to delve
more deeply into this character. An additional
role of Bonny, who could assist Mo in the
interview, could be created for a more able
student.
Review and reflect
Explore
Explain that the focus of today’s lesson will be
on appearances and deception. As they read,
the students should note when someone’s
outward appearance disguises what they are
really like.
Read pages 107–109, stopping after the
sentence ‘A lonely place to die.’ Ask the
students to discuss the effect of this mysterious
‘fox figure’ in the chapter. How does this figure
connect with the motif work they did in the
previous lesson? Who do they think the fox
figure is and why is that character in disguise?
Ask one student to stand with his/her back
against the whiteboard. Write either ‘Zep’ or ‘Mo’
above his/her head. He or she can ask up to ten
‘yes’ or ‘no’ questions in order to determine
which character he/she is (without using any
names). Draw out the key differences between
the characters.
Homework
Read Chapters 17–19. List the five most
important events that occur in these three
chapters.
Continue reading until the end of Chapter 16.
Ask the students to explore what they have
learned about Mo in this chapter and how
people judge him.
Distribute Resource 7b and ask the students to
find quotations from the novel to support their
ideas about the appearances of Zep and Mo.
Draw out that both characters are judged by
their appearances, but that Mo is falsely judged.
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 7
Resource 7a
Reasons to be disguised
Complete this spider diagram exploring as many reasons as you can for why
someone might wish to disguise his or her appearance.
Extension: Can appearances be deceptive? Explain when you think a fictional
character’s appearance has been misleading in the novel Buried Thunder.
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 7
Resource 7b
Appearances and deception
Complete the chart below, using the evidence from the novel.
Zep
Mo
How does he
appear at first?
Does he wear a
disguise? If so,
describe it and the
effect it has.
Do people judge
him because of his
appearance?
Do people treat him
unfairly because of
his appearance?
Do we learn
anything about him
to suggest that his
appearance is
misleading?
Complete the following sentence:
I believe that appearances are/are not deceptive because...
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 8
LESSON 8
Focus: Chapters 20–21
Creating a trailer to explore genre
Learning outcomes
Students will be able to:
 Define ‘genre’
 Select key episodes from the text
 Use media terminology to create a trailer
storyboard
Engage
Ask the students to share the five important
events that they selected for their homework.
Encourage them to compare their lists within
small groups (four or five students) and to
negotiate a single list between them. Invite
someone from each group to write their final
list up.
Then ask the students to write a foursentence-long radio voiceover advertising the
novel Buried Thunder.
Encourage the students to discover how the
proposed meal between Annie and Bryn
increases the tension. Draw the students’
attention to the ways in which this novel is
adhering to the expectations of its genre and
how, if it was turned into a film, the trailer
would need to convey that, just as the book
cover did.
Transform
Distribute the Reading Guide and ask the
students to turn to page 9, ‘Lights, Camera,
Action’. Read through the guidance on creating
a trailer and the associated media language.
Distribute Resources 8a and 8b and direct the
students to use the storyboard template to create
their trailer (you may wish to have extra sheets
for students who need more frames to create
their trailer). One student may wish to be in
charge of the artwork, while the other writes the
script for the sound effects and voiceover.
More able students should be encouraged to
use media terminology with precision and
imagination.
Share the voiceovers and ask the students to
choose the ones which they find most enticing
and to explain why. If possible, follow this up
by showing one or two movie trailers from
YouTube or another source. Draw out how
interest is created in the films, such as through
the use of emotive language, exciting scenes,
and quick flashes of a range of different
settings.
Invite the groups to share their storyboards, in
turn. Assign Buddy Assessors (i.e. Groups 1
and 2 might assess each other, etc.) and hand
out Resource 8c. Ask the students to
complete the checklist, adding in details where
appropriate and then complete the sections
saying what went well and suggested targets
for improvement.
Explore
Review and reflect
Ask the students to define the term ‘genre’ (a
type or category of literature, film, etc.) and
remind them of the first lesson they did on the
book cover. Discuss the importance of
understanding the genre of a book or film and
why, when a book or film is promoted, its
genre is usually made very clear.
Ask one student to stand at the whiteboard
and to write down the definition of ‘genre’. Give
the class one minute to tell him/her as many
different genres that they can think of
(‘comedy,’ ‘romance,’ ‘horror’, etc.). Ask one or
two groups to suggest how they would change
their storyboards to suggest that they were of a
different genre.
Read pages 141–156, stopping at key points
to discuss how the author creates tension. Ask
the students to look for the following:
1. cliff-hangers
2. increasing pace
3. a sense of danger.
Homework
Ask the students to design a poster advertising
a film of Buried Thunder. They should
emphasize its genre and how it could appeal to
its target audience (teenagers). Also, ask them
to write five quiz questions (with answers) about
the novel, which can be used in the next lesson.
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 8
Resource 8a
Creating a trailer
Use the template below to sketch out and note four episodes from the novel that you
think would be effective in a trailer. Decide what order you would put them in, and
what camera angles you would use.
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 8
Resource 8b
How to create a storyboard for a film trailer
Before you begin drawing
 Agree on your target audience and how you will make this trailer
appeal to them.
 Select a few key scenes from the novel as inspiration.
 Decide on the type of soundtrack/sound effects and/or voiceover you
will have.
Drawing your storyboard
 Draw your first image (consider if you want it to be in close-up, midshot or long-shot).
 Underneath that image write any sound requirements you have (for
example, scary music, dialogue or a voiceover).
 Choose and draw your next image until you finish the storyboard.
Checking your work
 Ask someone in your group to read out the storyboard making sure it
is complete.
 Are your intentions clear or do you need to add a little more
explanation?
 Does it make clear the type of film Buried Thunder would be and why
it would be exciting to see?
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 8
Resource 8c
Buddy group assessment sheet
Name of Group:
Name of Assessors:
 Is it an interesting trailer?
Explain why:
 Are the ideas clear?
 Does it capture some appropriate incidents from the novel?
 Does it use media terminology correctly?
Give examples:
 Does it have a complete set of pictures?
 Does it have a voiceover and/or sound effects/soundtrack?
 Would it appeal to a teenage audience?
Explain why:
 Does it capture the genre of the film?
Explain how:
Two particularly good things about this storyboard:
1.
2.
Two targets for improvement:
1.
2.
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33
OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 9
LESSON 9
Focus: Chapters 22–23
Tension and crisis
(Homework Chapters 24–26)
Learning outcomes
Students will be able to:
 Explore the build-up of tension
 Locate the variety of ways the author
increases tension
 Chart the tension in two key chapters
Engage
Share the students’ posters and highlight those
that convey the genre ‘psychological thriller’
with particular skill.
Collect in all the questions (with answers) that
the students produced for homework. Choose
ten questions from the homework assignment
and ask a student to serve as ‘quizmaster’.
The quizmaster should read out the questions
while the students work in pairs answering
them. Pupils should then swap papers with
another pair and the quizmaster should read
out the answers. Points are awarded for each
correct answer and, at the discretion of the
teacher, for particularly clever questions. The
pair with the most points wins.
Alternatively, use the crossword puzzle on
page 13 of the Reading Guide to test the
students’ knowledge.
Remind the class of what happened at the end
of Chapter 21. Encourage the students to
speculate on the importance of the arrival of
the fox and what might happen next. Explain
that the focus of this lesson is to trace how the
author builds up tension in the next few
chapters.
Explore
Read pages 157–172. As you read, ask the
students to note:
 when Maya puts herself in danger
 when Maya is unsure what is happening
 when the action speeds up
 when it looks as if one or more of the
characters will not survive.
Ask the students which part of this section was
most tense and how the appearance of Zep
changed the direction of this chapter.
Encourage speculation on who the fox figure is
now that we know it’s not Zep.
Transform
Display Resource 9a and distribute Resource
9b. Ask the students to look at the events
listed on Resource 9b and then chart how
they contribute to the level of tension in these
two chapters. If possible, display the chart to
the whole class on an interactive whiteboard
and invite a student to put in two of the events,
encouraging a discussion as to why those
particular moments are tense (some prompts:
they cause uncertainty; the characters are in
danger; Maya doesn’t know what is happening;
the action has speeded up; the first chapter is
coming true).
Then ask the students to work in pairs and to
be as accurate as possible to identify when the
tension increases or decreases. They may
wish to work with different coloured pens so
that they can chart any points where they
disagree about the level of tension.
More able students should be encouraged to
identify precise quotations, which they can
note on the chart, which they feel significantly
demonstrate that the situation is reaching a
crisis (again this could be modelled by a
student for the rest of the class).
Review and reflect
Ask several pairs to show their charts and see
how many have identified similar points of high
tension and crisis. Check that they have noted
that the tension decreases when Maya and
other characters are out of danger. Discuss
how the author has varied the tension and
what other crisis points they have noted in the
novel (for example, the opening chapter and
the encounter with Zep in the graveyard).
Homework
Ask the students to read Chapters 24–26 and
to answer the following questions:
 How has the police’s attitude to Maya
changed?
 What mysteries still surround the Rowan
Tree and the fox figure?
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 9
Resource 9a
Tension chart
Use the chart below to track the level of tension in Chapters 22 and 23.
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 9
Resource 9b
Events to chart
1. The fox stares at Maya.
2. Maya’s mother tells her not to leave the Rowan Tree.
3. Maya thinks that evil is attacking her family because they
are ill.
4. Maya goes outside and something is thrown over her head.
5. She is carried into the forest and finds Bonny who is very ill.
6. Mo is nearby, moaning and saying ‘Bonny’.
7. Mo gets a club-like branch and runs past Maya and Bonny.
8. Bonny explains that Mo would have fetched Maya to help
her.
9. Bonny says someone wants Mo dead.
10. Maya sees Bryn and Annie’s bodies in the forest.
11. Maya finds Mo badly hurt.
12. Maya realizes she was the standing figure in Chapter 1.
13. Maya sees the fox figure with an axe.
14. The fox figure attacks Maya and Mo.
15. Zep appears and attacks the fox figure.
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 10
LESSON 10
Transform
Focus: Chapters 27–28
The resolution
(Homework Chapter 29)
Learning outcomes
Students will be able to:
 Reflect on key aspects of the narrative
structure
 Understand the resolution of the plot
 Explore implications and inferences
concerning the character of Crystal
Display Resource 10b and give the students
time to discuss the introduction of these terms
to make their discussion of the crime sound
more official and accurate. Then explain to the
students that they will be preparing a news
report based on the events at the Rowan Tree.
They must make sure that they are as factually
accurate as possible but it must also be a clear
and interesting story.
Highlight points that they may wish to make;
for example, that Zep is a key witness and that
some of Crystal’s movements and motivations
are still unknown.
Engage
Put the question ‘What makes a satisfying
ending?’ on the board and ask the students to
discuss, in pairs, what they like to happen
(generally) and to feel at the end of a book.
Give them about three minutes to discuss and
then invite whole-class feedback. Draw out
their particular expectations of this novel (for
example, they will probably want to know who
committed the crimes and why).
Distribute Resource 10c to assist their
preparation and allow about 15 minutes for the
newscasts to be prepared.
Review and reflect
Explore
Choose three or four students to present their
newscasts and advise the class they may
award points for the following:
1. clarity and accuracy of information
2. use of correct vocabulary
3. ability to interest audience
4. delivery of newscast.
Ask the class whether Crystal is the culprit
they expected. Are they disappointed that it
was not another character?
Read pages 198–212, stopping occasionally to
check understanding.
Homework
Refer back to the sticky notes used in the first
two lessons and ask which predictions the
students can now eliminate. Discuss whether
any might still be close to the actual ending.
Distribute the ‘Who is this girl?’ police sheet
(Resource 10a) and ask the students to work
individually completing these in as much detail
as they can from the evidence they have from
the novel. Check their understanding and
make sure that they understand the difference
between facts (such as Crystal’s age) and
what they can infer (she hated everyone
involved with the Rowan Tree). Instruct them
to work at first individually and, after a few
minutes, encourage them to compare their
responses with a partner’s.
Tell the students to read the final chapter and
to return to the question at the start of this
lesson: What makes a satisfying ending? Ask
them to write a paragraph explaining whether
they feel the ending of Buried Thunder is
satisfying, and encourage them to support their
ideas with evidence from the novel.
This is a good opportunity to check
understanding of the resolution of the novel,
which may be confusing for some students.
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 10
Resource 10a
Who is this girl?
Police are asking for information about this 15-year-old girl known as ‘Crystal’.
She is suspected of a number of serious crimes. Complete as much as you can,
using evidence from the novel.
Relationship to the
Rowan Tree
Family?
Friends?
Home?
Childhood?
Crimes committed
Motivations for
actions?
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 10
Resource 10b
Terms to use in a news report
Imply: to strongly suggest something without explicitly saying it
e.g. The author implies that Crystal’s sad childhood is the
cause for her criminal behaviour.
Infer: to form an opinion or draw conclusions based on what
someone does or says, or something that happens, without
being explicitly told
e.g. From this, we can infer that Crystal had stayed in the
Rowan Tree and was responsible for all the noises that
Maya heard.
Facts: things that can be proven to be true
e.g. Crystal was the fox figure who attacked Maya
and Mo.
Circumstantial evidence: evidence such as fingerprints or
clothing which suggests someone has committed a crime
e.g. If the note to Frank telling him about Chloe was in
Crystal’s handwriting, then that would be circumstantial
evidence.
Witness testimony: the words of a witness who describes
what they have seen
e.g. Zep told the police that Crystal slept in the Rowan Tree.
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 10
Resource 10c
Planning a news report
You have been asked by a local news station to prepare a report on the events at the
Rowan Tree and the discovery of the perpetrator (i.e. who was committing the
crimes).
Use the grid below to help you plan your report.
Crimes
Murder, trespass, grievous bodily harm,
cruelty to animals
Culprit
Timings
Location
Motivation
Witness testimony
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 11
LESSON 11
Focus: Whole novel
Writer’s craft
Learning outcomes
Students will be able to:
 Understand aspects of the writer’s craft
 Create an original psychological thriller
 Explore different writing techniques
Engage
Ask the students to share their homework
paragraphs about the ending of the novel with
their partner. Then invite a short whole-class
discussion by asking the students to explore
other possible endings for the novel and decide
if they would have been equally satisfying.
Circulate around the room helping the students
to complete the planning sheet, encouraging
them to use the skills covered in other lessons,
such as building suspense, using interesting
settings and careful choice of adjectives.
Review and reflect
Tell the students to swap their plans with a
partner and ask them to comment on the
following:
1. anything that they particularly like
2. anything that they don’t understand or they
think might cause confusion
3. anything that could be developed further.
Homework
Ask the students to complete their psychological
thriller short stories.
Then set a few objects on a table or desk in a
‘stage-managed’ way to suggest that some
action has just taken place. For example, you
might place two ‘poker hands’ of cards next to a
torn letter and an overturned glass. Alternatively
you might have a single glove, next to a broken
necklace and a candle. Ask the students to take
one minute examining the scene and then six
minutes writing the opening to a thriller that
would explain this mysterious scene.
Explore
Invite a few students to share their writing and
ask the rest of the class to identify what makes
an exciting opening. Remind them what they
enjoyed about the opening of Buried Thunder
and how they might wish to emulate its strong
points.
Transform
Distribute the Reading Guide and ask the
students to turn to page 14, ‘Writing Your Own
Thriller’. Together, read the opening paragraph
and Tim Bowler’s writer’s craft section. Ask the
students what they think Tim Bowler is saying
about creative writing and how his advice might
help them.
Display Resource 11a and ask the students to
use this as guidance for creating a plan for their
story. Distribute Resource 11b (a standard
planning sheet) and if necessary, Resource 11c
(a support planning sheet for students who find
writing difficult). They may use the ideas from
the props exercise or they may want to build on
the setting work they did in Lesson 5, or they
may work on a fresh, original idea they have.
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 11
Resource 11a
Outline plan for a psychological thriller
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 11
Resource 11b
Psychological thriller planning sheet
Setting
Main character
Villain
First frightening
event
Second
frightening event
Climax
Resolution
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 11
Resource 11c
Support planning sheet
1. Choose one setting, one main character, one villain and one event from the boxes
below:
Setting
Main character

an old house

a shy teenage girl

an abandoned train station

a young orphan

a deserted warehouse

a new employee
Villain
Event

the secret owner of the
setting

unusual and unexplained
sounds are heard

someone with an important
secret

a mysterious and frightening
object is found

a rich celebrity

a threatening note is
discovered
2. After choosing your setting, characters and event from above, complete your plan.
3. Then write your opening paragraph. If you are stuck you could begin:
could not believe what he/she saw/heard.
His/her heart was beating fast...
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 12
LESSON 12
Focus: Whole novel
Review and reflect
Learning outcomes
Students will be able to:
 Review the whole novel
 Explore alternative titles, blurbs and covers
 Reflect on their own reading progress
Circulate around the room and note the range of
views expressed in the reviews. Although there
isn’t a headline on the reviews, you could
encourage those who work quickly to think of a
clever, succinct headline for their review.
As an extension for more able students, ask
them to make a comparison with another novel
they have read.
Review and reflect
Engage
Working in pairs, ask the students to list as
many possible titles for the novel as they can.
Set a timer and award points to the pair who
comes up with the most titles. Ask the students
to reflect on how they came up with a title and
what they like about titles suggested by others.
Introduce them to the idea of evaluating the
choices the author and publisher have made,
from the title of the book to its ending. They
should always be considering what they find
effective and what could be improved.
Explore
Distribute Resource 12a and ask the students,
working in pairs, to read the two reviews of
Buried Thunder and to carry out the three tasks.
Encourage them to flag up any words or phrases
that they don’t understand (‘claustrophobia’ or
‘paranoia’ might confuse some, for example).
Circulate around the room to check
understanding and to make sure that the
students understand that a review does not just
retell the plot, but evaluates the whole work.
If time allows, choose four students with differing
points to make about the book and invite them to
form a panel for a television review show. Ask
another confident student to be the host and ask
them to express their views on Buried Thunder.
Invite the class to ask or challenge the opinions
of those on the panel show.
Conclude by asking each student to evaluate his
or her own reading progression by completing
Resource 12d.
Homework
Distribute Resource 12c and explain that the
final Buried Thunder assignment will be to reimagine the cover, title and blurb for the novel.
Alternatively, if they have worked well on their
own original writing, the students could use this
resource sheet to create a cover and blurb for
their own work.
Suggest that students could help create a Buried
Thunder board, based on the more visually
appealing assignments in the scheme of work
including the storyboards, posters, creative
writing and the new covers.
Take a few minutes for whole-class feedback to
ensure their understanding of the articles and
the form and purpose of a review.
Transform
Display Resource 12b. Read it through with the
students, explaining that this will support their
task of writing their own review of the book. The
review should be between 300 and 500 words.
(Encourage more able students to aim at the
higher word count.) Ask them to plan three
paragraphs and to consider how they can fulfil
the requirements listed on Resource 12b.
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 12
Resource 12a
Reviews
Read the two reviews below.
1. Underline the adjectives the writers use to describe the novel.
2. Circle the phrases which engage your interest.
3. Explain which review you like most and why.
It’s possible to be chilled to the bone without meeting any vampires.
In Tim Bowler’s frightening and well-paced Buried Thunder, Maya’s
enemy is a personal demon. Something in the forest doesn’t like her,
and it follows her into the country house where her family runs a
hotel. The suspense and claustrophobia, and the war in Maya’s
head between reason and paranoia, reminded me of Alan Garner’s
classic The Owl Service. It was hard to believe that Maya’s family
could move into their new home, acquire guests and scare them
away all within a week, but the story is strong enough to survive a
sketchy set-up.
From The Observer, Sunday 3 April 2011, by Geraldine Brennan
This spine-tingler plunges into the stuff of nightmares.
“The body was lying in a thicket,” it begins. Fourteen-year-old Maya
doesn’t remember why she ran off the path in this dark forest. Two
dead bodies lie on the ground, each turning its head with eyes aglow.
A shadowy figure bends over a third body. Maya stumbles and
screams. Her family finds her and guides her out of this terrifying
forest, but when they reach their new home/business – a village hotel
called the Rowan Tree – something chilling occurs: A police officer
sent to investigate is the same person as the first dead body. Not a
twin, not a doppelganger – the same person. Maya just knows. Fright
and grisliness escalate. Someone unknown and unseen stalks Maya; a
fox has an unnatural power to make her follow it; foxes are turning up
disembowelled and decapitated – and not just foxes. The narration
stays faithful to Maya’s third-person-limited perspective, so readers
don’t know who’s good or bad any earlier than she does. Maya’s
warm parents and dedicated older brother can’t shield her or the
village from danger, and they become targets too. There’s nothing
particularly unique or specific about Maya and her family, which
works well here, as if this could happen to anyone. When clarity and
answers come, they’re sad, satisfying and less supernatural than they
first seemed.
From Kirkus Reviews, 1st September 2011
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 12
Resource 12b
Checklist for a review
When writing your own review, remember to include:
1. A catchy opening sentence
2. Information about the author and book
3. A short synopsis of the book
4. Advice about the kind of readers it is aimed at and
why it might appeal to them
5. Your opinion of the book
6. A memorable last line.
Your review should be 300–500 words long.
Write at least three paragraphs.
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 12
Resource 12c
New cover design and blurb
Use this resource sheet to plan a new title, cover and blurb for the novel.
Title
Cover
image
Blurb
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OXFORD ROLLERCOASTERS
Buried Thunder
Lesson 12
Resource 12d
Self-assessment sheet
Reading skills and
strategies
You practised this when:
Understand,
describe, select or
retrieve information,
events or ideas from
texts and use
quotation and
reference to text

You gathered evidence about characters from the text

You selected events that built up tension or showed
understanding of characters like Maya, Bonny or Mo

You traced the development of themes through the
plot
Deduce, infer or
interpret information,
events or ideas from
texts

You first looked at the cover of the novel and made
predictions about its content

You performed the role-play of the characters

You analysed Crystal’s actions
Identify and
comment on the
structure and
organization of texts,
including
grammatical and
presentational
features at text level

You thought about how the writer hooked the reader’s
interest in the opening chapters

You looked at the effect of cliff-hangers

You tracked the tension in the text
Explain and
comment on writers’
uses of language,
including
grammatical and
literary features at
word and sentence
level

You looked at the use of short and long sentences in a
specific passage

You analysed passages, like the description of the
Rowan Tree, looking at word choices

You analysed dialogue
Identify and
comment on writers’
purposes and
viewpoints and the
overall effect of the
text on the reader

You discussed the letter from the author in the
Reading Guide

You analysed a review and wrote one of your own
Relate texts to their
social, cultural and
historical contexts
and literary traditions

You looked at other stories where characters weren’t
believed

You looked at a poem, ‘The Thought Fox’

You debated literary portrayal and social perceptions
of foxes
I do this
well
I can
do this
sometimes
I need to
practise
this
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