Find the locations of forests in your local area. Could you visit some of them? Plan the journey there. At the end of the story, the animals have a picnic. What food would these animals eat as part of a picnic?

Why do trees have leaves? Can you find out and think of ways to share this information with others? Can you find out about different types of leaves? Look at this video interview with the author. Think of some questions that you would like to ask her: A hilarious book about a badger with a big cleaning problem and what happens when things go out of hand. Carry out some role-play activities based on the book, e.g. interview the other forest animals to ask them what they think about Pete’s actions. Create some pictures of trees using finger painting. Here are some instructions from the author, Emily Gravett:I laughed myself silly reading this one. I just could see what would happen to the forest, well OK I didn't totally expect that at the end, but I was close. :P Poor animals, I wonder why they didn't try harder to stop the badger. It was quite fun how it started with just cleaning here and there and then escalated to that. Look at this animated version of the story. Could you create your own animated retelling of the book? Plus points to the cover (which has a hole so it looks like you are looking through a tunnel in the forest and see the badger cleaning things up).

Can you create a book that has a ‘window’ in the front cover? Could you use this window in different creative ways?After really enjoying Meerkat Mail, I decided to look at some of Emily Gravett's other work. Contrasting MM, this is a very simple story, most suitable for EYFS (but still wouldn't be out of place in a KS1 book corner). A badger named Pete loves to clean the forest - to the extent that he chops it all down and replaces it with concrete, so it can never get messy ever again. But he realises that he's gone too far - both he and other animals rely on the forest. Together, they re-build it, and from now on Pete decides that only the actual rubbish should be put in the bin. Find out more about badgers. Where do they live? What do they eat? Can you write a report about them? Look at photos of badgers (and other forest animals) and use these as the starting point for your own pictures and paintings.