Piggybook
by Anthony Browne
The Piggott family are a seemingly normal family (mum, dad and two boys) - at least that’s how Anthony Browne sets the scene. However, in the Piggott family, the two boys follow the example set by dad and leave all the work around the house for mum, and show their gratitude by demanding her to hurry up with their meals! I suspect that part of Anthony Browne’s intention for writing this book is to highlight the fact that in too many families this is ‘normal’ behaviour, and mothers are not respected for the work they do in and out of the home. In my experience with using this book in the classroom, a lot of families still operate this way. Framing discussions about the behaviour of the boys and the way mum is treated will hopefully encourage children to be more grateful for what their carers do around the house and to become more responsible by helping out. Students are fascinated by the way Anthony Browne uses visuals (pigs) that play with his clever use of figurative language to highlight the chauvinistic behaviour of the males in the Piggott family. This book has lots of great teaching and learning opportunities, especially through the theme of family and gender roles and stereotypes. It’s most suitable for Years 2-4 but teaching and learning can be adapted to suit all levels K-6.
Discussions, teachable moments and tasks within the classroom:
- Family roles Discuss: What do the family members of the Piggott family do (Mrs Piggott cooks, washes up, makes the beds, vacuums, does the laundry, does the ironing, goes to work; Mr Piggott works a very important job, demands things from his wife, sits on the couch watching TV; the boys go to their very important school, demand things from their mum, sit on the couch watching TV)? Task: Write a paragraph to describe the roles of the Piggott family members. Discuss: What roles do you and your family members perform at home? Task: Write a paragraph to describe the roles within your family.
- Compare and contrast roles within the Piggott family with roles within your own family. Teachable moment: We can plan for our writing by using a Venn diagram. A Venn diagram is a graphic organiser for comparing and contrasting one thing with another. To compare my family with the Piggott family I can use a Venn diagram. I will record the similar elements within the area where the two circles intersect. In my family there is a mum and a dad and in the Piggott family there is a mum and a dad. I will write mum and dad in the middle. The Piggott family has two boys. In my family there are two girls and a boy. These are differences. On the left-hand side I will write the different elements for my family (two girls and a boy). On the right-hand side I will write the different elements for the Piggott family (two boys). Teachable moment: Vocabulary for comparing and contrasting Examples include - both, whereas, even though, although, alike, similar, different, etc. Task: Using your Venn diagram as a plan, write a paragraph to compare the similarities and differences between your family and the Piggott family.
- Values and respect Discuss: How has Anthony Browne shown that Mr Piggott and the boys don’t respect Mrs Piggott (they demand things from their mum, they say ‘Hurry up’, they expect their mum to do all the work around the house)? Discuss: Why has Anthony Browne emphasised the importance of Mr Piggott’s (very important) job and the boys’ (very important) school (because they don’t value the work that mum does; because they believe their situations are of greater value than mum’s)?
- Visual literacy Discuss: What do you notice about the visuals in the text? Why do you think Anthony Browne has done this? (examples: Mr Piggott and the boys are often seen with their mouths wide open because they constantly demand things from Mrs Piggott [NB: even Mr Piggott’s newspaper shows images of people with their mouths wide open]; there are a lot of pig references within the visuals because the boys acted like pigs; the picture above the fireplace shows a missing female figure perhaps because mum has just left the boys to fend for themselves; there is a scene showing the silhouette of a wolf in the background outside the window with the boys [aka pigs] in the foreground perhaps as a nod to the three little pigs story)
- Grammar - adverbial phrases and clauses Teachable moment: Adverbial phrases and clauses tell us the where, when or how. They give more information to verbs. Discuss: What are some examples of adverbial phrases within the text (with his two sons; in a nice house; with a nice garden and a nice car; in the nice garage)? Why do you think Anthony Browne has packed so many adverbials into one paragraph (to set the scene; to make his audience think that they are a normal family)?
- Use of repetition Teachable moment: Authors sometimes repeat words or phrases for emphasis. Discuss: What are some examples of repetition within the text (‘Hurry up with the breakfast ...’; ‘very important’; ‘______ all the ______’; ‘It took hours. And it was horrible’)?
- Figurative language - similes Teachable moment: In the text, after Mrs Piggott leaves the families and the boys are led to fend for themselves, the house became ‘like a pigsty’. The house wasn’t a pigsty. It was like a pigsty. This is called a simile and it’s an example of figurative language. If the author had said ‘Soon the house was a pigsty’, this would be an example of literal language. With literal language, you say exactly what you mean. With figurative language, we use figures of speech to compare things with one another. In this example, Anthony Browne has compared the Piggott house to a pigsty. Task: Complete a ‘Y-chart’ with adjectives to describe what living in a pigsty would look like, sound like, and feel like.
- Synonyms for speech (ie said) Discuss: After the house became ‘like a pigsty’, the boys’ speech became more pig-like. What are some examples of this pig-like speech (squealed, grunted, snorted, snuffled)? TODO: Create an anchor chart for synonyms for said with these examples that can be added to when reading other texts. Task: Sequence the synonyms for speech within the text to show the boys becoming more pig-like. TODO: Prepare synonyms for speech from the text on strips of paper for sequencing, and discuss your choices for why you placed them in that order.
- Inferring Teachable moment: When we infer meaning, we gain a deeper understanding of a text. We use clues to draw conclusions. The answers are not always right there, but we can make an educated guess by using clues within the text and using our own background knowledge and experiences. Task: Use inferences to write responses to these questions - Why did Mrs Piggott leave? Why did she come back? Why did she stay? What did the boys learn?