The Floating Field

Discussion questions

• How did the unique floating field help the Panyee Football Club develop their football/soccer skills?

• The kids in The Floating Field are very passionate about football. What is something that you are passionate about?

• Look closely at the illustrations of the story to see if you can notice any details about life in Panyee. What do you think would be different about your life if you lived in a floating village?

Vocabulary

• High and low ocean tides: regular rise and fall of ocean water level (due to gravitational pull of the moon, rotation of the Earth, and geographic location) that exposes more or less of the coastal shoreline.

• Prawns: crustaceans with external skeletons and 10 legs similar to shrimp, but differ in other ways (habitat, type or number of pincers, claws, and gills)

• Groupers: one of many species of large fish with big heads and wide mouths that live in warm seas. 

• Sandbar: a ridge of sand built up by currents,  especially in a river or in coastal waters. It can be exposed by low tide.

Video content

• TMB Panyee FC short film This awesome video, from a Thai bank, tells the full story of the book (in Thai with subtitles).  Towards the end, the grown ups (assumed from original 1986 team) are shown in a group shot. 5 min 15 sec.

• Thailand's floating football pitch Wordless video footage of players on the floating field. 50 seconds.

• Kim Lien and Nguyen Quang Share Their Process for Illustrating The Floating Field Illustrators share their process (in Vietnamese with subtitles). They’d never heard of the story until they were asked to illustrate it. 3 min 46 sec.

Publisher content 

• Written interview with author Scott Riley and KAA illustration: https://lernerbooks.blog/2021/03/the-floating-field-an-interview-with-scott-riley-and-kaa-illustration.html 

• Excellent teachers’ guide from SLJ: https://theclassroombookshelf.com/2021/03/29/kids-in-action-teaching-ideas-for-the-floating-field/  

Activities

• Set up a small soccer field and play a game. For an extra challenge, try focusing on the fancy footwork required in a small space!

• Use recycled materials to build a flat floating structure. Challenge your students to design a structure that will support some weight—perhaps use LEGO people to represent the players on your field.

• Look through this photo essay of soccer fields around the world: https://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2018/06/photos-soccer-fields-around-the-world/562862/ (unless you have a subscription, it only lets you access a couple articles a month, so plan accordingly).

• Learn more about the country of Thailand, using your library resources and databases or the many books available on Epic! (free to educators). 

Companion books