Standards Aligned
Literature Grouping with Rationale
The Neptune Project
Holyoke,
Polly. The Neptune Project.
Disney·Hyperion Books, 2014.
810L
10 – 13 years old/3-5th grade
810L
10 – 13 years old/3-5th grade
Set
in the distant future, Nere discovers the reason she’s always felt different is
that she is. Her genes were altered before she was ever born. Her friends at
the Neptune colony are also all a part of this same science experiment meant to
make them better able to handle ocean climates than regular humans can. Once
they find out their actual purpose in life set by the government scientists,
the kids run away.
Alignment
CCSS.ELA-L.RL.3.3 - Describe
characters in a story (e.g., their traits, motivations, or feelings) and explain
how their actions contribute to the sequence of events
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.3.3 - Describe the relationship between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text, using language that pertains to time, sequence, and cause/effect.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.3.7 - Use information gained from illustrations (e.g., maps, photographs) and the words in a text to demonstrate understanding of the text (e.g., where, when, why, and how key events occur).
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.3.3 - Describe the relationship between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text, using language that pertains to time, sequence, and cause/effect.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.3.7 - Use information gained from illustrations (e.g., maps, photographs) and the words in a text to demonstrate understanding of the text (e.g., where, when, why, and how key events occur).
Goals:
The students will read fictional text and then brainstorm out ideas on paper about the characters and animals in the book. The students will have created artwork based on a single character/animal from the fiction book, the student will use the visual resource books to create an accurate representation of the animal in their artwork. The student will present their art to the class, they will explain details of the character and animal they chose and why.
Learning Objectives:
Cognitive: The student will read the fiction book and use the nonfiction photobook alongside it. The student write 10 ideas down in a brainstorm format
about characters and animals
in the fiction book.
Psychomotor: The student will create one piece of artwork based on a character and animal from the fiction book, using the nonfiction books as reference for how it should look in real life.
Cognitive: The student will show their artwork and explain to the class their reasons for choosing this character and animal, and explain 4 details from the nonfiction books on how the aligned animal associated with the character is like real life versions of the animal.
Psychomotor: The student will create one piece of artwork based on a character and animal from the fiction book, using the nonfiction books as reference for how it should look in real life.
Cognitive: The student will show their artwork and explain to the class their reasons for choosing this character and animal, and explain 4 details from the nonfiction books on how the aligned animal associated with the character is like real life versions of the animal.
Outcomes:
The student will read the fiction book, look through the photobook while reading the fiction book. The student will write ideas about the characters and animals from the story. The student will create artwork of an animal from the story, the student will use the nonfictional books as resources to create the artwork. The student will then present their artwork to the class and talk about the animal/character.
The student will read the fiction book, look through the photobook while reading the fiction book. The student will write ideas about the characters and animals from the story. The student will create artwork of an animal from the story, the student will use the nonfictional books as resources to create the artwork. The student will then present their artwork to the class and talk about the animal/character.
Activity
In this activity,
(1) the students will read The Neptune Project and keep the Ocean: A Visual Encyclopedia alongside them to compare the text to real life images of the animals described therein.
(2) The students brainstorm, short phrases and sentences grouped on paper, about the representation of marine biology and aquatic life in the fictional book compared to how the real-life versions live. This includes environment, size, color, temperament – the comparison extends to the animals and the human characters who are aligned with a specific type of animal.
(3) Once the student has some ideas written down, they will create artwork depicting one of the characters/animals from the fictional text. They can use pen, paint, or modeling clay to represent their animal. The work should reference the real-life images found within Ocean: A Visual Encyclopedia and Oceans: Dolphins, Sharks, Penguins, and More! in size, shape, and appearance.
(4) The student will present their artwork to the class, describing the character from The Neptune Project they selected, the aquatic animal that character is aligned with, and explain how the real-life animal is like the character – Are they quick to anger? Fierce fighter? Quick to flee? Works alone or in a group? Real life details of the animals should be sourced from Sharkopedia: The Complete Guide to Everything Shark, Oceans: Dolphins, Sharks, Penguins and More!, and Life in the Ocean: The Story of Oceanographer Sylvia Earle.
In this activity,
(1) the students will read The Neptune Project and keep the Ocean: A Visual Encyclopedia alongside them to compare the text to real life images of the animals described therein.
(2) The students brainstorm, short phrases and sentences grouped on paper, about the representation of marine biology and aquatic life in the fictional book compared to how the real-life versions live. This includes environment, size, color, temperament – the comparison extends to the animals and the human characters who are aligned with a specific type of animal.
(3) Once the student has some ideas written down, they will create artwork depicting one of the characters/animals from the fictional text. They can use pen, paint, or modeling clay to represent their animal. The work should reference the real-life images found within Ocean: A Visual Encyclopedia and Oceans: Dolphins, Sharks, Penguins, and More! in size, shape, and appearance.
(4) The student will present their artwork to the class, describing the character from The Neptune Project they selected, the aquatic animal that character is aligned with, and explain how the real-life animal is like the character – Are they quick to anger? Fierce fighter? Quick to flee? Works alone or in a group? Real life details of the animals should be sourced from Sharkopedia: The Complete Guide to Everything Shark, Oceans: Dolphins, Sharks, Penguins and More!, and Life in the Ocean: The Story of Oceanographer Sylvia Earle.
Life in the Ocean: The Story of Oceanographer Sylvia Earle
Nivola, Claire A. Life in the Ocean: The Story of Oceanographer Sylvia Earle. Frances
Fostster Books, Farrar Straus Giroux, 2012.
NC1170L
The students will read this text after completing The Neptune Project and use it in their comparison of how real-life scientists interact with the wildlife in the ocean compared to the characters in the fictional book. This book will provide additional details about the landscape, experiences underwater for real-life humans in deep waters, and how the aquatic animals behave around people. It is related because of how both books describe oceanic life, one in outer space and the other on Earth.
NC1170L
The students will read this text after completing The Neptune Project and use it in their comparison of how real-life scientists interact with the wildlife in the ocean compared to the characters in the fictional book. This book will provide additional details about the landscape, experiences underwater for real-life humans in deep waters, and how the aquatic animals behave around people. It is related because of how both books describe oceanic life, one in outer space and the other on Earth.
Ocean: A Visual Encyclopedia
Woodward, John. Ocean: A Visual Encyclopedia. DK Publishing, 2015.
IG1200L
The students will use this book alongside The Neptune Project to see how the aquatic animals look in real life while they are reading about them in the fictional version. This visual resource will be used again for the secondary part of the assignment, visual art or sculpture of one of the Neptune Kids’ animal connection, whichever animal DNA that was used with each child. It is related because all of the different animals in The Neptune Project are all shown in photographs within this book. It is a good companion to have alongside the fictional text.
IG1200L
The students will use this book alongside The Neptune Project to see how the aquatic animals look in real life while they are reading about them in the fictional version. This visual resource will be used again for the secondary part of the assignment, visual art or sculpture of one of the Neptune Kids’ animal connection, whichever animal DNA that was used with each child. It is related because all of the different animals in The Neptune Project are all shown in photographs within this book. It is a good companion to have alongside the fictional text.
Oceans: Dolphins, Sharks, Penguins and More!
Rizzo, Johnna, and Sylvia A. Earle. Oceans: Dolphins, Sharks, Penguins, and
More!: Meet 60 cool sea creatures and explore their amazing watery world.
National Geographic, 2010.
1190L
The students will use this book for their presentation of their visual art or sculpture they created. They will use the information from the text to explain how the real-life animal they chose is like the character it’s tied to in The Neptune Project. It is related because of the details/facts that accompany each entry of the animals. This book gives general statistics, comparisons to other animals of the same species (types of dolphins – color patterns, body shape, age), and provides detailed images of each animal. This is useful in the construction of the artwork portion of the assignment and for the presentation of the artwork at the end.
The students will use this book for their presentation of their visual art or sculpture they created. They will use the information from the text to explain how the real-life animal they chose is like the character it’s tied to in The Neptune Project. It is related because of the details/facts that accompany each entry of the animals. This book gives general statistics, comparisons to other animals of the same species (types of dolphins – color patterns, body shape, age), and provides detailed images of each animal. This is useful in the construction of the artwork portion of the assignment and for the presentation of the artwork at the end.
Sharkopedia: The Complete Guide to Everything Shark
Sharkopedia: The
Complete Guide to Everything Shark. Time Inc. Books, 2015.
1120L
The students will use this book for their presentation of their visual artwork or sculpture if they used a character that is aligned with sharks. Most of the other texts do not include much information about sharks. This text is useful for students who choose this animal for their artwork as it shows the size, shape, and color between different types of sharks. It is related because of the details it gives for the animals that the other books do not provide for sharks. This book fills in any gaps for information if students select this animal, the prior books only provide one or two entries for sharks.
1120L
The students will use this book for their presentation of their visual artwork or sculpture if they used a character that is aligned with sharks. Most of the other texts do not include much information about sharks. This text is useful for students who choose this animal for their artwork as it shows the size, shape, and color between different types of sharks. It is related because of the details it gives for the animals that the other books do not provide for sharks. This book fills in any gaps for information if students select this animal, the prior books only provide one or two entries for sharks.
