Reading
Throughout the year we will be focusing on all the literary skills we need to learn in 6th grade. We do this by reading novels and studying each book, it's plot, characters, and conflict.
As we go through the year I will keep updating the novels we are reading as a class and share with you some of the activities we do with them.
Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
Thirteen-year-old Brian Robeson is on his way to visit his father when the single-engine plane in which he is flying crashes. Suddenly, Brian finds himself alone in the Canadian wilderness with nothing but a tattered Windbreaker and the hatchet his mother gave him as a present--and the dreadful secret that has been tearing him apart since his parents' divorce. But now Brian has no time for anger, self-pity, or despair--it will take all his know-how and determination, and more courage than he knew he possessed, to survive.
Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
Thirteen-year-old Brian Robeson is on his way to visit his father when the single-engine plane in which he is flying crashes. Suddenly, Brian finds himself alone in the Canadian wilderness with nothing but a tattered Windbreaker and the hatchet his mother gave him as a present--and the dreadful secret that has been tearing him apart since his parents' divorce. But now Brian has no time for anger, self-pity, or despair--it will take all his know-how and determination, and more courage than he knew he possessed, to survive.
The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi
Thirteen-year-old Charlotte Doyle is excited to return home to Rhode Island from her school in England during the summer of 1832. But when two families she was supposed to travel with mysteriously cancel their trips, Charlotte finds herself the lone passenger on a long sea voyage with a cruel captain and a mutinous crew. Worse yet, soon after stepping aboard the ship, she becomes enmeshed in a conflict between them! What begins as an eagerly ancitipated ocean crossing turns into a harrowing journey, where Charlotte gaines a villainous enemy...and is put on trial for murder!
Thirteen-year-old Charlotte Doyle is excited to return home to Rhode Island from her school in England during the summer of 1832. But when two families she was supposed to travel with mysteriously cancel their trips, Charlotte finds herself the lone passenger on a long sea voyage with a cruel captain and a mutinous crew. Worse yet, soon after stepping aboard the ship, she becomes enmeshed in a conflict between them! What begins as an eagerly ancitipated ocean crossing turns into a harrowing journey, where Charlotte gaines a villainous enemy...and is put on trial for murder!
Freak the Mighty by Rodman Philbrick
"I never had a brain until Freak came along..." That's what Max thought. All his life he'd been called stupid. Dumb. Slow. It didn't help that his body seemed to be growing faster than his mind. It didn't help that people were afraid of him. So Max learned how to be alone. At least until Freak came along. Freak was weird, too. He had a little body--and a really big brain. Together Max and Freak were unstoppable. Together, they were Freak the Mighty.
"I never had a brain until Freak came along..." That's what Max thought. All his life he'd been called stupid. Dumb. Slow. It didn't help that his body seemed to be growing faster than his mind. It didn't help that people were afraid of him. So Max learned how to be alone. At least until Freak came along. Freak was weird, too. He had a little body--and a really big brain. Together Max and Freak were unstoppable. Together, they were Freak the Mighty.
Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson
August 1793. Fourteen-year-old Mattie Cook is ambitious, adventurous, and sick to death of listening to her mother. Mattie has plans of her own. She wants to turn the Cook Coffeehouse into the finest business in Phildelphia, the capital of the new United States. But the waterfront is abuzz with reports of disease. "Fever" spreads from the docks and creeps toward Mattie's house, threatening everything she holds dear. As the cemetaries fill with fever victims, fear turns to panic, and thousands flee the city. Then tragedy strikes the coffeehouse, and Mattie is trapped in a living nightmare. Suddently, her struggle to build a better life must give way to something even more important--the fight to stay alive.
Quote Websites:
Brainy Quote
Quotelicious
World of Quotes
The Quote Garden
August 1793. Fourteen-year-old Mattie Cook is ambitious, adventurous, and sick to death of listening to her mother. Mattie has plans of her own. She wants to turn the Cook Coffeehouse into the finest business in Phildelphia, the capital of the new United States. But the waterfront is abuzz with reports of disease. "Fever" spreads from the docks and creeps toward Mattie's house, threatening everything she holds dear. As the cemetaries fill with fever victims, fear turns to panic, and thousands flee the city. Then tragedy strikes the coffeehouse, and Mattie is trapped in a living nightmare. Suddently, her struggle to build a better life must give way to something even more important--the fight to stay alive.
Quote Websites:
Brainy Quote
Quotelicious
World of Quotes
The Quote Garden
Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls
Billy, Old Dan and Little Ann--a boy and his two dogs....A loving threesome, they ranged the dark hills and river bottoms of Cherokee country. Old Dan had the brawn, Little Ann had the brains--and Billy had the will to train them to be the finest hunting team in the valley. Glory and victory were coming to them, but sadness waited too. And close by was the strange and wonderful power that's only found where the red fern grows.
Billy, Old Dan and Little Ann--a boy and his two dogs....A loving threesome, they ranged the dark hills and river bottoms of Cherokee country. Old Dan had the brawn, Little Ann had the brains--and Billy had the will to train them to be the finest hunting team in the valley. Glory and victory were coming to them, but sadness waited too. And close by was the strange and wonderful power that's only found where the red fern grows.
Solve the Great American Medical Mystery with a Girl Scientist on the Trail of a Deadly Epidemic!
A mysterious outbreak of typhoid fever is the subject of this riveting historical thriller. Luckily for the residents of New York, their future depends on a young female scientist, a girl out to prove that science isn't only for men!
If Prudence Galewski is ever going to get out of Mrs. Browning's esteemed School for Girls, she must demonstrate her refinement and charm by securing a job appropriate for a young lady. But Prudence isn't like the other girls. Through a stroke of luck, she lands a position in a laboratory, where she is swept into an investigation of the fever bound to change medical history. From ritzy mansions to shady bars and rundown tenements, she explores every potential cause of the disease. But there's no answer in sight, until the volatile Mary Mallon emerges. Dubbed "Typhoid Mary" by the press, Mary is an Irish immigrant who has worked as a cook in every home the fever has ravaged. Strangely, though, she hasn't been sick a day in her life. Is the accusation against her an act of discrimination? Or is she the first clue in a new scientific discovery?
A mysterious outbreak of typhoid fever is the subject of this riveting historical thriller. Luckily for the residents of New York, their future depends on a young female scientist, a girl out to prove that science isn't only for men!
If Prudence Galewski is ever going to get out of Mrs. Browning's esteemed School for Girls, she must demonstrate her refinement and charm by securing a job appropriate for a young lady. But Prudence isn't like the other girls. Through a stroke of luck, she lands a position in a laboratory, where she is swept into an investigation of the fever bound to change medical history. From ritzy mansions to shady bars and rundown tenements, she explores every potential cause of the disease. But there's no answer in sight, until the volatile Mary Mallon emerges. Dubbed "Typhoid Mary" by the press, Mary is an Irish immigrant who has worked as a cook in every home the fever has ravaged. Strangely, though, she hasn't been sick a day in her life. Is the accusation against her an act of discrimination? Or is she the first clue in a new scientific discovery?
Typhoid Mary Podcast |
Typhoid Mary MovieWhen Zachary Beaver Came to Town by Kimberly Willis Holt
"Fatty, Fatty, Two by Four. Can't Get Through the Kitchen Door." Toby Wilson is having the toughest summer of his life. It's the summer his mother leaves for good. The summer his best friend's brother is serving in Vietnam. And the summer Zachary Beaver, the fattest boy in the world, arrives in Toby's sleepy Texas town. While it's a summer filled with heartache, it's also a summer of new friendships gained and old friendships renewed. And it's Zachary Beaver who turns the town of Antler upside down and leaves everyone, especially Toby, changed forever. |
Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli
She was elusive. She was today. She was tomorrow. She was the faintest scent of a cactus flower, the flitting shadow of an elf owl. We did not know what to make of her. In our minds we tried to pin her to corkboard like a butterfly, but the pin merely went through and away she flew. |
Book Report Ideas |
Indian in the Cupboard by Lynn Reid Banks
It's Omri's birthday, but all he gets from his best friend, Patrick, is a little plastic Indian brave. Trying to hide his disappointment, Omri puts the Indian in a metal cupboard and locks the door with a mysterious skeleton key that once belonged to his great-grandmother. Little does Omri know that by turning the key, he will transform his ordinary plastic Indian into a real live man from an altogether different time and place! Omri and the tiny warrior called Little Bear could hardly be more different, yet soon the two forge a very special friendship. Will Omri be able to keep Little Bear without anyone finding out and taking his precious Indian from him? |
Rules
- Report on a different book each quarter.
- Use a different type of report each quarter.
- One book during the school year must be on a nonfiction book.
- Be sure to share your report with me at [email protected]
- Write a letter to the main character and the character's reply.
- Write a different ending for the book on Blogger, StoryBird, or Fan Fiction.
- Pretend you are a talk show host and interview the main character.
- Create a travel brochure for the setting of the story or scrapbook pages about key characters.
- Create a book jacket, including illustrations, an enticing synopsis, author bio, and favorable reviews.
- Summarize the book into a comic or story aimed for younger students or your classmates (e.g. PowToon).
- Write a news article about an important event from the book.
- Write about the decisions you would make if you were the main character in the book.
- Dramatize a scene from the story with other students or using puppets.
- Post a book review on Share What You're Reading, goodreads, or Amazon. Be sure to include a headline for the review and tell how many stars (out of 5) that you would give the book.
- Chose two characters from the story and write a conversation they might have.
- Write a letter or email to a close friend recommending the book you have just read.
- Make a list of new, unusual, or interesting words or phrases found in your book and research their origins/meanings.
- Prepare a television commercial about your book. Act out the commercial for your classmates.
- Write ten chat room-style questions that could be used to start an online discussion about the book. (Make sure you provide a list of answers.)
- Explain why you think this book will or will not be read 100 years from now. Support your opinion by stating specific events in the story.
- Discuss one particular episode in the story that you remember most. Describe why you think it remains so clear to you.
- Write a letter/email to the author of your book. Address it to the publisher and mail it. Or, see if the author has a Web site and email it.
- Write a ballad or song about the characters and events in your story. Set the words to the music of a popular song and sing it to the class.
- Create a diorama in a shoebox of a major scene from the book.
- Describe in detail three characters from the story. List reasons why you would or wouldn't want to get to know these people.
- Design a poster or new book cover depicting the climax of the story.
- Record an audio Bookcast review of the book.
- Draw a classroom mural depicting a major scene(s) from the book.
- After reading an informational book, make a scrapbook about the topics.
- Create a YouTube video describing the book and whether or not you recommend it to others.
- Create an infographic (including information, facts, and figures) to highlight data from an informational book (nonfiction). Click here for tools.