Inside out and back again, by Thanhha Lai

Lai, Thanhha. Inside out and back again. New York: Harper Collins, 2017.
Lexile Level: 800L
Awards: Newbery Honor, 2012; National Book Award for Young People's Literature, 2011

Learning Activity:
Target Age: Grade 5
This novel in verse is told from the perspective of Ha, who is travelling to America after her city Saigon, falls under siege during the war in Viet Nam. Ha has her share of troubles, but for the most part, is willing to move to America.

Brother Quang says this about moving:

"How can we scramble away
like rats,
without honor, without dignity,
when everyone must help
rebuild the country?"
(Lai, p. 44)

In groups of two, write a dialog between Ha and Brother Quang talking about their mother's decision to move the family to America. After peer revision, you will perform your dialog with your partner.

Learning Standard:
Explain the relationships or interactions between two or more individuals, events, ideas, or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text based on specific information in the text

Learning Goal:
Students will discover interpersonal relationship dynamics between characters in the text.

Learning Outcome:
Students will understand the interpersonal relationship dynamic between brother and sister in Inside out and back again.

Learning Objective:
Students will write and perform a dialog from the perspectives of Sister Ha and Brother Quang from the novel, Inside out and back again.

Captain Underpants and the sensational saga of Sir Stinks-a-lot: the epic twelfth novel, by Dav Pilkey

Pilkey, Dav. Captain Underpants and the sensational saga of Sir Stinks-a-lot: the epic twelfth novel. New York: Scholastic Inc., 2015.


Lexile Level: 800L

Booktalk


Learning Activity:

While there are some parts of this epic novel that are depicted in graphic novel form, much of it is written in paragraph form. Have the children work in groups to storyboard their favorite chapter from the book. They can verbally recount the story in front of the class. They can express it through storyboard format (8 frames maximum). They can also act out the chapter (which will be the most fun).

Learning Standard:

SL. 3.4 Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details, speaking clearly at an understandable pace.

Learning Goals:

Children will tell the story of their favorite chapter of Captain Underpants.

Learning Objectives:

Children will recount the sequence of events in their favorite chapter of Captain Underpants in a clear and understandable fashion so that the audience can follow their story.

Learning Outcomes:

Children will convey their chapter by oral presentation.

Barbed Wire Baseball by Marissa Moss

Title: Barbed Wire Baseball

Author: Marissa Moss

Lexile: 800L

Summary/Learning Activity:

In this inspiring book, author Marissa Moss follows major league baseball player Kenichi Zeni Zenimura after he is sent to an internment camp for Japanese Americans.  

For this learning activity, I want to use the book’s focus on the human aspect of baseball as a way for students to think critically. Students will use the book as inspiration for a free-writing journal prompt where they’ll describe a time when an activity or sport meant more than simply the score or purpose of the game. Was there an emotional connection to a certain team, were they playing for a family member, etc.

Standards:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.3.3 Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.3.1 Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons.

Goal: Students will be able to relate their knowledge of sports to their own point of view and experience.  

Objectives: Students will be able to write one to two paragraphs about how a sport or activity impacted their life, providing specific details and coherent writing.

Outcome: Students will understand how to identify the positive benefits of an activity that extend beyond the immediate game. 

Sell tool: https://blackboard.albany.edu/courses/1/2179-IIST-571-7890/db/_3897601_1/embedded/Barbed%20Wile%20Baseball.pdf