Suspense toolkit © Pie Corbett 2017 To create suspense to build tension, scare the reader and keep the reader wanting to find out what will happen you might want to: N/R Y1/2 Y3/4 Y5/6 As in N/R plus: As in Y1/2 plus: As in Y3/4 plus:

• put the main • isolate your character/s • let the threat get closer and closer • hide the threat; character into a scary o in darkness/cold • use an abandoned setting or lull the setting – forest, old o in a derelict setting • show the character’s feelings by reader with a cosy setting bridge, empty house reactions, e.g. she froze • use scary sound effects, e.g. • personify the setting to make it sound • make the main something hissed • include short punchy sentences for dangerous – use the weather and/or character hear or see o or show a glimpse, e.g. a drama time of day to create atmosphere something hand appeared … • use rhetorical questions to make the • make your character hear, see, touch, • describe the threat • show your character’s reaction, reader worried – Who had turned out smell or sense something ominous e.g. she shivered the light? • make the main • surprise the reader with the unexpected character escape! • use exclamations to show • use empty words to hide the threat – impact something, somebody, it, a silhouette • suggest something is about to happen

• use dramatic connectives to • select powerful verbs – crept, grabbed, • reveal the character’s thoughts, e.g. She introduce suspense and drama smothered wondered if she would ever escape the – at that moment, suddenly, darkness. unfortunately • use dramatic connectives – in an instant, without warning, out of the blue • slow the action by using sentences of three and drop in clauses.

Useful ideas for teaching suspense – always co-construct the toolkit with the class Model all aspects of the toolkit and display word banks, sentences and ideas on prompt cards, washing lines or learning walls N/R Y1/2 Y3/4 Y5/6 As in N/R plus: As in Y1/2 plus: As in Y3/4 plus:

• Collect, display and use • Read stories with suspense – • Collect language banks for • From novels, collect and compare different images of scary settings, innovate on sentences scary settings, ominous suspense paragraphs and innovate e.g. castle, bridge, forest, weather, cold and darkness – lake, old house • Dramatise stories where main sort by mood • Use film clips to discuss how to manipulate

character hears or sees the reader; write short suspense scenes something scary • Raid novels for scary scenes, • Raid picture books & fairy descriptive passages and tales for scary settings • Use drama to create a suspense scene • Show main character’s write ‘in the style of’ and notice descriptions reactions • Compare suspense sections • Use sound effects, music and voices to create suspense • Use pictures and photos and analyse effect created • Collect words to describe a of scary places and character’s reaction and use in • Use drama to recreate • Hot seat characters from drama and a novel describe these sentences, e.g. froze, hid, suspense, mime how a to explore feelings and thoughts at moments

ducked down, trembled, character reacts and hot seat of suspense – turn into writing • Imagine a story shivered happening with a scary • Gather word banks for suspense using the moment • Use ‘in a dark, dark house’ to • Rehearse sentences using senses build suspense dramatic connectives to • Compose simple introduce a sound effect or • Rehearse suspense sentences using sentences descriptive captions and • Collect verbs, dramatic glimpse, e.g. At that moment, connectives, empty words, of three to build tension and drop in clauses; sentences she heard ... / At that moment, descriptive phrases to use contrast with rhetorical questions and short she saw when building suspense sentences • Dramatise and imagine being in a scary setting, • Show images of scary places showing reactions and list what might happen

© Pie Corbett 2017: This resource may be reprinted to support in-school training but should not be forwarded to others or used for commercial gain.