A Bunkbed Prank

Category: Slice of Life

Trangt mellom køyeseng og garderobeskap Photograph by Øyvind HolmstadI lay there, waitinging for everythingeverything to go quiet. Waiting for the fidgetingfidgeting and the coughinging above to stop. Soon there was the sound of tiredtired yawning,ing, then just steady breathinging as my little brother droppeddropped off to sleep. It was time! I carefullycarefully placedd my feet, still in their warm socks, against the linkinglinking metalmetal wires of the top bunk above me. I gentlegently pushedpushed the mattressmattress up and down, up and down, then harderharder and fasterfaster like the pistonspistons on an engine.engine. Suddenly,Suddenly, there was a scream from above and my brotherbrother jumpedjumped out of bed, forgettingforgetting he was on the top bunk, crashingcrashing to the floor below.below. He lay there sobbingsobbing and callinging for our mum. What would she say when she came intointo our bedroom?bedroom? How much troubletrouble would I be in?

Comprehension

Clarify these words: fidgiting, coughing, tired, yawning, steady breathing, placed, linking, bunkbed, pistons on an engine, forgetting, sobbing.

Retell what has happened in this Slice of Life.

What prediction can you made about what might have happened next?

Make inferences or give opinions about:

Why the writer was waiting.
Why there was fidgiting and coughing.
Why there is yawning, then steady breathing.
What it was time for.
What the writer is doing with his feet.
What pistons on an engine do.
Why the little brother did what he did.
How the writer is feeling at the end of the story.

What question could you ask about this Slice of Life?

Visualise these uses of descriptive language: fidgiting and coughing; tired yawning; steady breathing; dropped off to sleep; carefully placed my feet; linking metal wires; gently pushed the mattress up and down, up and down; faster and harder; like the pistons on an engine; a scream from above; crashing to the floor; sobbing and calling for mum.

Make a connection with this narrative so far.

Word Study

Verb endings: What happens when we add s, ed or ing to: tire, drop, place, forget, sob.

Other affixes: What happens when we add other prefixes and suffixes like ly, er, ful to these words: careful, gentle, hard, fast, care.

Why is there a silent d in fidgiting?

What two words make up these compound words: everything, bedroom.