In groups, brainstorm the ideas of poem What Has Happened to Lulu based on the pictures given

below.
 What has happened to Lulu, mother?
What has happened to Lu?
There's nothing in her bed but an old rag-doll
And by its side a shoe.

Why is her window wide, mother,

The curtain flapping free,
And only a circle on the dusty shelf
Where her money-box used to be?

Why do you turn your head, mother,

And why do tear drops fall?
And why do you crumple that note on the fire
And say it is nothing at all?

I woke to voices late last night,

I heard an engine roar.
Why do you tell me the things I heard
Were a dream and nothing more?

I heard somebody cry, mother,

In anger or in pain,
But now I ask you why, mother,
You say it was a gust of rain.

Why do you wander about as though

You don't know what to do?
What has happened to Lulu, mother?
What has happened to Lu?
Charles Causley
Practice 1

Complete the passage below with the most suitable words.

Highlights leave younger sad Example

return gaps language upset Knows
Childlike truth Adolescent Attempt mother

In this poem, the events are seen from the view of a child. He happens to be the _______________
brother of Lulu, the elder sister who runs away from home. The ___________ of the poem is very simple
and truly _______________. The poem also has a _____________ tone, especially as a result of the
repeated questions put forward by the child to his ________________. She does not tell the child the
______________ possibly because she does not want the child to be ______________by the sad news.
Perhaps, the mother _____________ that is still possible that Lulu will ____________ home. The poem
shows the __________ of an innocent child to come to terms with the harsh facts of life. The poem also
___________________ the struggles that mothers face inn bringing up their ___________ children.
There are also some information _____________ which have to be filled out by the reader. For
___________, the reader has to figure out why Lulu decided to __________ the home. What exactly was
the argument about the night?

Practice 2

Based on the poem, list what did the persona observe and listen.

1. Give three themes of the poem.

2. What are the moral values that you learn from this poem? Give two.
3. In stanza 1, what is the situation in the room in which indicates something has happened to
Lulu?
4. In stanza 2, why is there a ircle on the dusty shelf?
5. Why do you think the persona kept on repeating What has happened to Lulu, Mother?
6. What do you think happened to Lulu? Give a reason for your answer.
a) Answer:
b) Reason:
7. In stanza 1, why does the persona ask his mother about Lulu?
8. In stanza 1, name two things that the persona notice in Lulus bedroom.
i) ..
ii) ..
9. In stanza 2, what causes the curtain to flap free?
10. In stanza 2, where did Lulu put her money box?
11. In stanza 3, why does the mother turn her head away from the persona?
12. In stanza 3, what phrase refers to the paper the mother is reading?
13. In stanza 4, what woke the persona from his sleep?
14. In stanza 4, the things in line 3 refer to?
i)
ii)
15. In stanza 5, describe what the persona heard that night.
16. In stanza 5, what excuse does the mother give as an answer to the personas question?
17. In stanza 6
i) what does the persona notice about the mother?
ii) Based on You dont know what to do, describe the mothers feelings.
18. How do you know the persona is close to Lulu?
19. In your opinion, did Lulu run away or was she kidnapped? Give a reason for your answer.
20. What do you think of the mothers answers to the personas questions?
21. Why doesnt the mother tell the truth to the persona? Give two possible reasons.
22. Suggest two things that the mother should do about Lulus disappearance.
23. In your opinion, where was the personas father when Lulu disappeared?
24. Why do some teenagers run away from home? Give two possible reasons.
25. What should be done to prevent child kidnapping? Suggest two ways.
26. How would you feel if a family member disappear from home?
27. How can social media help in cases of child kidnapping? Give two suggestions.
28. What happened to the money box in Stanza 2, Line 4?
29. In stanza 3, Line 2, what does tear-drops fall mean in one word?
30. What are the two things the mother is doing in Stanza 3?
31. What are the two things woke the persona up?
32. What is the theme portrayed in the poem?
33. From stanza 1, what was found on Lulus bed?
34. The line The curtain flapping free in stanza 2 refer to?
35. From stanza 3, why do you think the mother was crying?
36. Do you think Lulu ran off because her mother gave her too much freedom? Give reasons for
your answer.
37. Do you think Lulu makes a right decision to run away from home? Provide reasons for your
answer.
38. Imagine you are Lulus mother. What would you do to deal with Lulus disappearance? Explain.
39. In stanza 1, which word has the same meaning as illusion?
40. What has happened to Lulu, mother?
What has happened to Lu?
What is the feeling expressed in the two lines above?
41. Lulu has ran away from home. If you have a friend who is thinking of running away from home,
what advice would you give to your friend?
Advice 1:
Advice 2:
42. From stanza 1, why is the speaker worried?
43. What do you think was written in the note mentioned in stanza 3?
44. Lulu has left home.
Imagine you are Lulus younger brother. What would you say to Lulu to persuade her to return?
Give two points.
45. Who is the persona?
46. Which line in stanza 3 suggest the mother is crying?
47. Why was the mother crying?
48. Where is the setting of the poem?
49. Who is asking what has happened to Lulu?
50. In stanza 6, how does the personas mother feel?
51. From stanza 4,
i. I woke to voices late last night
Whose voices the persona may have heard that woke him up?
ii. What can you infer from the line I heard an engine roar?
52. In stanza 5, what does the phrase gust of rain being compared to?
53. What is the personas mother doing in stanza 6 and why do you think she reacts that way? Give
a reason for your answer.
54. In stanza 2,
I. What does the line the curtain flapping free indicates?
II. What did Lulu take with her?
55. In stanza 3, why do you think the mother says It is nothing at all?
56. In stanza 3, why do you think the personas mother crumple the note?
57. Who is asking what has happened to Lulu?
58. In stanza 6, how does the personas mother feel?
59. From stanza 4,
i. I woke to voices late last night
Whose voices the persona may have heard that woke him up?
ii. What can you infer from the line I heard an engine roar?
60. In stanza 6,
Why do you wander about as though
You don't know what to do?
Why do you think the mother does nit know what to do?