A fantasy story begins by asking readers to accept something that does not happen in everyday life: a school for dragon charming, a floating circus or a world with unfamiliar rules. The excitement is not merely that impossible things exist. It is what a young reader does with the possibilities: makes predictions, tests ideas and wonders how the characters might respond.
The first imaginative step
In an ordinary school story, children already know many features of the setting. A fantasy school may retain classrooms, friendships and first-day nerves while adding creatures or customs the reader has never met. That contrast creates a productive question: what stays familiar when the place changes? A child might recognise the anxiety of arriving somewhere new even if they cannot picture the dragon egg in Sammy Rambles. The imaginative work involves connecting a new premise to known feelings. Readers are not required to believe dragons exist; they are invited to treat the fictional rules seriously while the story lasts.
Rules give invention shape
An imaginary world becomes more interesting when it has limits. A flying creature that can do absolutely anything at any time leaves few meaningful problems for a character to solve. A reader can notice which abilities and restrictions the author actually establishes, and which questions remain open. Encourage children to separate details found in the text from their own additions. They might invent a dragon transport system as a creative exercise, for instance, without saying the book contains one. This distinction teaches respect for an author’s story while leaving plenty of room for personal invention.
Predictions are not spoilers
A mysterious object or unexpected visitor often invites readers to guess what might happen next. Ask for two different explanations of the same clue and what evidence would support each one. The child may be surprised later, but that is part of the pleasure. A prediction is a provisional idea, not a test of whether the child is clever. Encourage the phrase ‘I think this because…’ rather than ‘I know this will happen’. When a chapter overturns a guess, discuss how the author directed attention and what new information changed the interpretation.
Imagining choices, not just scenery
Children can spend a long time drawing a magnificent castle, but a story also invites moral and practical decisions. What would you do if you were given responsibility for something fragile and powerful? Would you ask a friend for help? Would you explore an unfamiliar room immediately or learn its rules first? These questions connect the fantasy situation to everyday judgement without pretending there is one correct response. A reader’s answer may differ from the character’s. Exploring that difference gives the invented world emotional interest beyond its visual spectacle.
Make room for more than one response
One child may imagine how a dragon flies; another may focus on friendships; a third may be curious about the architecture of a school. None of these interests is automatically more literary than the others. Invite drawings, short spoken descriptions or a model made from ordinary craft materials. Ask the child to name a detail from the book that inspired their creation. This gives the activity a connection to reading while keeping it playful. Avoid treating every imaginative answer as a claim about what the author intended.
Example: design a new school rule
After hearing about Dragamas School for Dragon Charming, a group of children invent one rule for an imaginary dragon school. One proposes that every dragon needs a quiet resting area; another suggests that pupils should learn how to recognise when a dragon is frightened. The children explain why the rule might matter and what could go wrong without it. This is a new activity inspired by the premise, not a description of the published school’s timetable. The teacher can encourage each proposal to have a reason, helping the children connect imaginative possibilities with consequences.
Use imagination to develop language
Describing something impossible forces a writer or speaker to choose useful words. ‘Big dragon’ gives the listener little to picture. ‘A dragon whose wings cast a shadow across the courtyard’ offers scale and setting. Children can experiment with comparisons, precise verbs and sensory details while keeping invented descriptions clearly marked as their own. Ask which words make an image stronger and which become repetitive. The activity works through talking as well as writing, so pupils who find spelling difficult can still contribute vivid ideas before deciding how to record them.
Return to the actual story
Creative activities should lead back to reading rather than replace it permanently. Once the child has designed an imaginary object, invite them to discover how the author describes a similar problem or setting. What was more surprising than their own version? Which detail would they never have invented? A difference is not a mistake. It shows how one initial premise can lead to many coherent stories. The official first chapter of Sammy Rambles can be sampled on the website; use it for confirmed details rather than inventing plot facts to make an exercise sound exciting.
Keep the invitation open
Fantasy will not be every child’s favourite genre. Some prefer realistic adventures, mysteries or information books. The broader value of an imaginative activity lies in giving interested readers a chance to ask questions and develop ideas. Offer choices rather than claiming that fantasy automatically improves every aspect of creativity. For children drawn to dragons, the unusual premise may be the door into regular reading and storytelling. The most rewarding outcome is often a child asking an original question and wanting to return to the chapter to see what happens next.
One creative question for a quiet afternoon
Ask a child to imagine a place that combines something familiar with one impossible feature. It might be a library whose shelves move only when someone tells a joke, or a railway station where travellers exchange memories for tickets. Then ask what practical problem the impossible feature creates. How do visitors find the right book? What happens when nobody knows a joke? This exercise can be spoken, drawn or written. Its strength is the requirement to think beyond decoration: an invention becomes the source of a story. The child can change the rules, but should explain how the new rule affects the people using the place.
Imagination is not a race
A child may need time to picture an invented setting before speaking. Do not reward only the person who offers the quickest or strangest idea. Try a quiet minute to sketch, think or jot down words, then invite discussion. Sometimes an apparently small question, such as where a dragon would sleep, leads to a more coherent story than a spectacular invention with no rules. Creativity has room for careful thought, revision and different ways of expressing an idea.