Understanding Billionaire Boy

Overview

This 60-minute lesson uses Billionaire Boy by David Walliams as a springboard to develop Year 3 students’ reading comprehension, character analysis, and exploration of themes such as friendship and money. The activities are highly interactive and scaffolded to meet the statutory requirements of the English National Curriculum for Year 3 (ages 7-8). The session is designed for a class of 25 Slovakian students and incorporates group work, role play, and creative writing, encouraging empathy, critical thinking, and reflection on moral themes.

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National Curriculum Links

Reading - comprehension (Year 3):

• Pupils should be taught to:
  • Develop positive attitudes to reading and understanding of what they read by listening to and discussing a wide range of fiction.
  • Understand what they read, in books they can read independently, by:
    • Drawing inferences such as inferring characters’ feelings, thoughts and motives from their actions.
    • Predicting what might happen from details stated and implied.
    • Discussing the sequence of events in books and how they relate to each other.

Writing - composition:

• Pupils should be taught to:
  • Plan their writing by discussing and recording ideas.
  • Write narratives about personal experiences and those of others (real and fictional).
  • Draft and write by composing sentences orally, progressively building a varied vocabulary.

Spoken language:

• Pupils should participate in discussions, presentations, performances, role play, improvisations and debates.

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Learning Objectives

By the end of this lesson, students will be able to:

1. Read with understanding: Identify key ideas and events in a segment of Billionaire Boy.
2. Character analysis: Describe the main characters and explain their feelings and motives.
3. Explore themes: Understand and discuss the themes of friendship and money, relating them to the story and their own experiences.
4. Communicate critically: Participate actively in group discussions and role play, presenting ideas clearly.
5. Creatively express: Write a short character diary entry imagining the feelings and thoughts of a character.

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Resource Preparation

• Copies of an excerpt from Billionaire Boy (approx. 2 pages) – select chapter showing key interaction around friendship and money.
• Whiteboard and markers / Interactive board
• Character cards (main characters: Joe Spud, Bob, Dad)
• Paper and pencils for creative writing
• ‘Emotion emojis’ printable or cards to show feelings
• Role play props (hats, glasses, fake money, friendship bracelets optional)

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Lesson Breakdown

1. Introduction & Set Context (10 minutes)

• Recap / Activate prior knowledge: Briefly introduce Billionaire Boy and author David Walliams. Ask: “Who likes stories about money and friendship?” “What do you think it’s like to be very rich?”
• Listen and Read: Teacher reads aloud the selected excerpt with enthusiasm, pausing to clarify tricky vocabulary and check understanding with quick, targeted questions.
• Q&A: Students answer “Who are the main characters here?” and “What is happening in this part of the story?” to build comprehension.
• Link to curriculum: Listening to and discussing texts, clarifying meanings.

2. Group Work: Character and Feelings Analysis (15 minutes)

• Form 5 groups of 5 students each. Distribute character cards randomly. Each group focuses on one character from the excerpt.
• Task: Use ‘emotion emojis’ cards to express how their character might feel at different points. Write down 3 adjectives about the character’s feelings and motives.
• Groups share with the class, explaining their choices. Teacher models vocabulary: e.g., “Joe feels lonely because...” or “Bob is kind and loyal...”
• Link to curriculum: Infer characters’ feelings and motives from actions; discuss ideas in groups.

3. Role Play: Exploring Friendship & Money (15 minutes)

• Groups prepare short role play scenes imagining a new interaction between two characters focusing on friendship or money dilemmas (for example: Joe trying to buy friendship, Bob offering support without money).
• Encourage improvised dialogue and use of props to engage kinaesthetic learners.
• Each group performs their scene (2-3 mins each) to the class.
• Class gives positive feedback and discusses which behaviours show true friendship or problems with money.
• Link to curriculum: Participate in role play; develop spoken language skills; understand themes through drama.

4. Creative Writing: Character Diary Entry (15 minutes)

• Individually, students write a short diary entry from the perspective of a character (Joe or Bob). Prompt with sentence starters:
  • “Today, I felt...”
  • “I wish my friend would...”
  • “Money means...”
• Teacher circulates supporting vocabulary and encouraging descriptive phrases.
• Volunteers share some diary lines aloud.
• Link to curriculum: Write narratives about fictional experiences; develop vocabulary and sentence construction.

5. Plenary & Reflection (5 minutes)

• Recap key ideas: What did we learn about money and friendship? How did characters feel?
• Quick oral quiz: “Why is friendship more important than money?” “What should we remember about being a good friend?”
• Students vote on a ‘Friendship vs Money’ scale by moving to sides of the room — encouraging physical movement and reflection.

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Assessment

• Formative: Monitor group discussions and role plays for understanding of characters and themes.
• Written work (diary entries) collected and assessed for comprehension, vocabulary use and engagement with theme.
• Teacher notes: Did students infer feelings? Use appropriate vocabulary? Express ideas clearly in speech and writing?

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Differentiation & Inclusion

• Support: Visual aids and emotion cards help EAL learners and those with additional needs.
• Extension: Challenge more able pupils to include predictions about what might happen next or to compare their own ideas of money and friendship with Joe’s.
• Cultural sensitivity: Discuss universal nature of friendship beyond wealth, acknowledging different cultural experiences with money.

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WOW Factor / Extra Ideas

• Use voice recording or tablets for groups to record role plays for playback and reflection.
• Create a class “Friendship Wall” with written diary entries and emoji reflections publicly displayed.
• Connect themes to real-life charity or kindness projects — e.g., “What would Joe do if he gave money to help others?” linking story themes to global citizenship.

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This plan is crafted not only to meet National Curriculum expectations but also to immerse students in themes that resonate across cultures and encourage compassion, critical thinking, and creativity — all vital 21st century skills.