https://docs.google.com/document/d/1oHFXxFc9_ftJd72XGF9PUs2fje8ZvNQyqBWW-rYuVdk/edit
Tanya Beers
IST571: Charlote’s Web by E.B. White - Lit Kit
Title: Charlotte’s Web
Author: E.B. White
Lexile Level: 680L
Grade Level: 3rd – 7th grade
Age Range: 8 through 12 years
ISBN #: 0061124958
Fern is a young girl who lives on a farm with her parents and her older brother Avery. Fern
saves a run piglet on her farm from being killed by her father and decides to keep him for a
pet and she names him Wilbur. He lives in the barn with the rest of the animals who he makes
friends with and Fern visits him and plays with him every day. This is a story of life on a farm:
birth, death, love, and new life; a tale with heart and life lessons that are timeless!
Lesson for 6th graders:
Students will read Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White.
Students will research two scholarly sources of their choosing about farming and use them
to write a 2-page essay about farms and the farming way of life.
a. daily life
b. types of animals common on a farm
c. the purpose that these animals serve
d. anything they found interesting about farming
e. address whether they think that farming is a worthwhile way to make a living today
After the reading and submission of the writing assignment, students will engage in a class
discussion about the reading by verbally addressing these questions:
1. How would you feel if you were Fern and your father wanted to kill the runt of the litter
of pigs? Would you see this as part of farm life and accept it or would you feel the way Fern
did?
2. Why does Fern’s father let her keep Wilbur as a pet instead of killing him?
3. Do you think Fern has matured by the end of the book? If so, how?
4. What are the relationships of the animals in the barn to each other? Are they all friends/
family/enemies?
5. How do you feel about Charlotte’s death and Wilbur’s reaction to it?
Learning Standards:
AASL Standards for the 21st – Century Learner.
1. Inquire, think critically, and gain knowledge.
1.1 Skills
1.1.1 Follow an inquiry-based process in seeking knowledge in curricular subjects, and
make the real-world connection for using this process in own life.
1.1.2 Use prior and background knowledge as context for new learning.
1.1.3 Develop and refine a range of questions to frame the search for new understanding.
1.1.4 Find, evaluate, and select appropriate sources to answer questions.
1.2.2 Demonstrate confidence and self-direction by making independent choices in the
selection of resources and information.
2. Draw conclusions, make informed decisions, apply knowledge to new situations,
and create new knowledge.
2.1 Skills
2.1.1 Continue an inquiry-based research process by applying critical-thinking skills
(analysis, synthesis, evaluation, organization) to information and knowledge in order to
construct new understandings, draw conclusions, and create new knowledge.
2.1.3 Use strategies to draw conclusions from information and apply knowledge to curricular
areas, real-world situations, and further investigations.
Learning Goal:
Students will engage in a lesson about the farming way of life and how the main character
in the reading, Fern, lives her everyday life encountering real-life issues and situations that
students can identify with.
Learning Objectives:
1. Through an essay, students will describe the farming way of life (that Fern also lived) and
how they feel about farming as a way to make a living today in order to learn about an
occupation that is fading. (Affective and Psychomotor)
2. Students will discuss their opinions and knowledge of the main characters and their lives
in Charlotte’s Web through a class discussion as a way to identify with real-life issues in the
reading. (Cognitive)
Learning Outcome:
Students will express their thoughts and emotions about farming and real-life issues in the
assigned reading through writing and class discussion.
Works Cited:
New York State Department of Education. (2011). New York State P-12 Common Core
Learning Standards for English Language Arts & Literacy. Retrieved from
https://www.engageny.org/resource/new-york-state-p-12-common-core-learning-
standards-for-english-language-arts-and-literacy.
White, E.B. Charlotte’s Web. HarperCollins, 1952.
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