Lost and Found is a free story for Educators to download and read to young children. This story is about a boy and a penguin and their growing friendship. A penguin shows up at "the boy's" front door by surprise. The boy appears sad yet the penguin follows him around still. The boy attempts to help the penguin after becoming convinced he is lost.
About The Story
A sad and lonely penguin once showed up at a young boy's door. The child started searching for his home after deciding he had to be lost. No one knew where the penguin belonged. Upon learning that the penguins were from the South Pole, the boy decided to help the penguin return there.
Together, they set out to row across the ocean, encountering both good and bad weather conditions. Upon arriving at the South Pole, the boy came to realise that sometimes the answer is right in front of you the entire time.
With beautiful illustrations and a charming storyline, this poignant and richly enjoyable picture book won both a gold medal in the Nestle Children's Book Prize and a Blue Peter Book Award and has been turned into a BAFTA-winning animation. Illustrated in Jeffers' inimitable style, it is a visual delight, and its themes of loneliness and friendship will resonate with children.
Click the link to download the story for FREE: Lost and Found
Extension Of Learning Experiences
- Discuss how the boy might be feeling when the penguin first arrives at his door. Explore why the penguin follows the boy. What does he want?
- The boy made a mistake leaving the penguin at the South Pole. Discuss mistakes that the children might have made in the past. How did they resolve them?
- The penguin was lonely... Discuss what it means to be lonely and how we can help others when they are feeling lonely. What can we do when we feel lonely ourselves? How can we help others?
- Find out about penguins... Where can you find them? How are they adapted to living in that environment? What do they eat?
- Find out about the South Pole. Try to find it on a globe. Where is where you live? How far away is it? If you wanted to go there, how would you travel? While they were travelling to the South Pole, the boy and penguin saw 'good weather and bad'. Use this as a starting point for learning about different types of weather.
- Penguin Information Posters - The Penguin Information Posters provide simple facts on penguins for children to understand. It can be used as a discussion point for children who show an interest in penguins. These posters can also be used in a display.
- Penguin Tracing Lines - Penguin Tracing Lines aims to help children in the development of pre-writing skills. It provides children with the ability to use cognitive development, observations, and hand-eye coordination and encourages the child to draw in a specific direction
- Penguin Match Counting - Penguin Match Counting is a counting activity from 1 to 10 for children to match the correct number of penguins to the corresponding fish. Children have to count the fish and match the penguin. This activity is great for number recognition.
The value of each other's companionship is made clear in Lost and Found—both in terms of preventing loneliness and feeling less alone. Having friends, feeling cared for, and feeling like we're not alone are essential to preserving our mental health.