Franklin's Class Trip

Alison Mews is co-ordinator of the Centre for Instructional Services at
Memorial University of Newfoundland.

Franklin the turtle, who conquered his fear of the dark and of
thunderstorms in previous books, faces another fear in this most recent
tale. He eagerly anticipates his class trip to the museum until he hears
there are real dinosaurs inside. Not realizing they are extinct, both he
and Snail believe they will encounter live dinosaurs and they quietly
worry their way through the various exhibits. When Franklin comes face
to face with an actual tyrannosaurus skeleton, his fright and immediate
relief provide amusement to his classmates, who believe he is joking.
Later he is undaunted by a suggested visit to the scary Egyptian exhibit
because he “ha[s] a mummy at home.”

Children will delight in the play on words and be sympathetic to
Franklin’s dilemma while recognizing that his fear is groundless. As
in the other Franklin books, Clark’s illustrations are expressive,
aptly portraying the animals’ anticipation of the museum trip, their
joy at dressing up in knights’ armor, and their thrill of discovery on
the archeology dig as well as Franklin’s apprehension and subsequent
relief. Dedicated to Toronto’s Royal Ontario Museum, this book will be
launched there in conjunction with a Franklin’s World exhibit and a
theatrical performance based on this book that will then tour the
country. Highly recommended.