What would be essential to you in an emergency?

Could you imagine being stuck underground in a dark, flooded mine? Well, this was the reality for one Bonnie Vale miner in 1907.

Trapped! is a true story by Julia Lawrinson, told entirely in verse and through the eyes of the trapped miner’s son, Joe. In this activity based on the book, have students think about practical wants and needs if they were in an emergency.

There are plenty of other ways to introduce Trapped! in your classroom. Try:

• discussing how the narrative style works for the narrator and target audience;
• writing a short story from the perspective of Joe’s father as he waits for rescue; or
• researching other famous examples of trapped miners in Australia and comparing experiences.

View the full teaching notes here.