Year 5 case study: 'Bathers at Asnières'

Transcript

A Year 5 pupil from Bonneville Primary School reads a piece of original writing created for the Out of Art into Storytelling project

Bonneville Primary School pupil:

This is a story about a hard-working family, who suffered great hardship and indeed some happiness.

'Bang! Bang!' went the door knocker and all the Le Plats rose in unison from the dinner table. Surely Siriff was not at the door again? The wretched rent collector's last terrifying visit had only been two days earlier. 

Monsieur Le Plat hurried to the old, splintered door and opened it a tiny crack. Before Monsieur could say a word, the large fist was thrust through door followed by a drunken, belching 'Bonjour, it is rent day'. 

Within seconds, Siriff was in the house pulling open drawers and scouring every corner for any money. The younger boys, Jean, Paul and Sebastian, watched open mouthed, while their elder brother, Pierre, scowled, his eyes filled with hatred.

A while later, the family sat back down to eat their now cold dinner. 'If this continues we will not have a roof above our heads for much longer,' whispered Madame Le Plat.

Early the next morning, the Le Plat family prepared to leave for work at the nearby factory. They all felt extremely lucky to have work when times were so hard, and most of the neighbourhood was unemployed.

There was a clattering of coffee cups, a bustling of bags and a creak of the bathroom door as everyone hurried. At last, Jean, Paul and Sebastian were on the doorstep with Madame. Monsieur bellowed up the stairs, 'Pierre, this is not a morning to lie in bed. You will lose your job!  We will lose the house, shift yourself!' There was silence. Nothing could be heard. Not a sound.

With their heads bowed in confusion, they trudged slowly down the road towards the factory. Suddenly, there was a massive cry from the distance. The Le Plats glanced up and heard that the factory was closed for the day.

'Why?' said the younger boys, but no one replied. The cries had changed, 'The factory is closed!' to a trample of feet as the workers made their way towards the river for the day instead.

Madame Le Plat looked around at her husband, 'Perhaps we should go down to the river.  There is no work that can be done and it is a beautiful day. It would be good to relax and we can look for Pierre.' 

At that moment, Pierre's best friend, Debere, rushed past shouting, 'Quick, quick! Get down to the river bank. Get yourself a good position. Pierre is trying to win the Big River Race. He is already in a boat. He is determined to win!'

The Le Plats could not believe what they were hearing. In a daze, they found an untouched spot, adjacent to the river. It wasn't long before Jean, Pierre and Sebastian had stripped off and were enjoying the refreshing feel of the cool river. 

Madame sat silently, feeling uncomfortable. She was doing nothing while her home was at risk. Monsieur had given up worrying and just stared out into the clear water. As he was staring, he felt a thump, thump. It was the wagging tale of Pierre's dog, See See, who had just appeared.

As Monsieur stared, he began to daydream. His eyes were slowly dragged towards the couple who were being rowed across the river to watch the race. It suddenly hit him! If Pierre won, he and his wife would be just like them! 

While Monsieur was daydreaming, Paul scavenged the river floor for treasure. Everyone's attention was suddenly grasped by the loud bark of See See. Jean looked up and saw the race approaching. He could not believe his eyes. Pierre was in the lead! 'Allez, Pierre, Allez!'

As the family rose to their feet, Jean's shouts were echoed by them. With the finish line in sight, Pierre pulled and pulled, increasing his speed. Within seconds he had won the race. The Big River Race!

That evening, after a day of celebration, Monsieur, Madame and the three younger boys stayed at home feeling happy, safe and secure for the first time in years, meanwhile Pierre went to celebrate with his friends at the local pub.

The following morning, there was no sign of Pierre. The family started off towards the factory. As the family came around a corner they were once again greeted by Debere but this time Debere was like a ghost, withdrawn and pained. Debere's eyes filled with tears as he broke the news. Pierre had an accident by the river. He was dead.

Slowly, the family turned and found their way back to the river where they were so happy the day before. Monsieur lay down and looked out at the river with See See at his back. Madame sat alone, isolated from the family, just staring out at the river. Sebastian sat on the river bank, hating what he saw, while the others splashed about trying to forget.

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