My Side of the Mountain Week 1 Novel Study Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Vocabulary Focus Words: For this unit I would recommend to use the vocabulary as a morning work activity to save us on time, quickly review them at the beginning of the lesson. Begin each lesson by listing the following vocabulary on the board, discussing and defining Vocabulary Focus Words: 1) inspired 2) gorge 3) cascades 4) purse Begin each lesson by listing the following vocabulary on the board, discussing and defining Vocabulary Focus Words: 1) brisk 2) hemlock 3) upholstered 4) congregate 5) riffles 6) eddies 7) emphatic 8) frantically Begin each lesson by listing the following vocabulary on the board, discussing and defining Vocabulary Focus Words: 1) strode 2) conquer 3) lolled 4) whisked 5) combustible 6) independent Begin each lesson by listing the following vocabulary on the board, discussing and defining Vocabulary Focus Words: 1) edible/nonedible 2) mussels 3) implements 4) fringe Preview/Background Building Give each student their book, and explain the expectations of the novel study. They will be required to read every night, including two chapters each weekend, with corresponding homework. It is their responsibility to read the assigned chapter each night as well as have their parent sign off. Each student should have their own copy, that they need to have at school with them each day. Ask the students to look at the book’s cover and predict what the story will be about. Record these predictions on butcher paper and keep them Discussing Chapter 1 Complete Anticipation Guide Introduce the chapter and discuss: Why is this chapter called I Hole Up in a Snowstorm? As a class Read the author’s preface. Define PREFACE. How does the author introduce the book’s SUBJECT, PURPOSE, AND PLAN? (Read the chapter as a class, or have the students partner read. I suggest starting off whole group. You can also differentiate this part, give the higher students the questions below while you walk through them with the rest of the class whole group) After reading discuss: Why does this chapter make you feel as though you jumped into the middle of the story? Discussing Chapter 2 Complete Anticipation Guide Before Reading Discuss: Why is this chapter called I Get Started on This Venture? (Read the chapter as a class, or have the students partner read. I suggest starting off whole group. You can also differentiate this part, give the higher students the questions below while you walk through them with the rest of the class whole group) How do you know that Sam had planned and prepared to go to a certain place? How do you know that Sam didn’t have experience Discuss Chapter 3 Complete Anticipation Guide Before Reading Discuss: Why is this chapter called, I Find Gribley’s Farm? (Read the chapter as a class, or have the students partner read. I suggest starting off whole group. You can also differentiate this part, give the higher students the questions below while you walk through them with the rest of the class whole group) How does Sam know Miss Turner believes him when he says he is going to live on his great-grandfather’s farm? Discuss what Sam may have Discussing Chapter 4 Complete Anticipation Guide Before Reading Discuss: Why is this chapter called I Find Many Useful Plants? (Read the chapter as a class, or have the students partner read. I suggest starting off whole group. You can also differentiate this part, give the higher students the questions below while you walk through them with the rest of the class whole group) This author uses many adverbs and adjectives and figurative language. The first paragraph says, “Birds were dripping from the trees, little birds, singing and flying posted on the “Unit Board” throughout the unit to refer back and compare their reading to their predictions. Brainstorm ideas on a piece of chart paper any information that students know about wilderness survival. Using the two attachments titled “predictions” and “Catskills Map” you can give each student their own copy, each group, or make overheads… discuss and complete the activities as a class as an introduction to the book. What’s missing? With your students, make a list of questions they have as they finish reading this chapter. (Ex. How did Sam get a falcon?) Sam said he was scared for two days when the blizzard hit. Discuss FEAR. What are some things that fear makes people do? Besides being trapped in his tree, what are some other things Sam was probably afraid of? After the snowstorm, after he dug his way through the snow, Sam laughed. Discuss times when your students LAUGH. Is it always at something funny? Discuss why you think Sam laughed? Who or what was he laughing at, or about? Describe a time when you shouted, either out loud or to yourself, “I DID IT!” Discuss the deeper meaning to, “I did it.” Have some students share some of their personal experiences with it. What did Sam do? Optional: On back door of class room begin to develop and make a life-sized replica of Sam’s tree home. See if you can devise a way to add surroundings as the novel progresses. Fathers, with living in the wilderness? No one took Sam seriously about running away. If people laugh at your ideas, does it discourage you and make you give up, or does it make you more determined to succeed? Explain. Discuss with your students, RUNNING AWAY. According to the author, this is a common desire among children. Is it different today than when the author wrote the book (1959)? Talk about safety concerns. Would it be possible to do what Sam did, today? Why or why not? Discuss POINT OF VIEW with your students. From the first two chapters, which point of view is the author using to tell the story? Do you think that the author, Jean, is really Sam? Explain why you do or do not think so. Have students make predictions about this. Bill took time to teach Sam how to make a fire, and then practiced with him so he’d get it right. Describe a time when someone took time to teach you something meant by, “I knew what she (Miss Turner) was thinking . . .” What did he know and how did he know it? Sam’s IMAGINATIONS of Great-grandfather’s farm have merged with REALITY, and Sam’s having a hard time realizing he is actually at the Gribley farm. How does reality finally settle in? Discuss with your students a time when they thought and dreamed about something so long that when it actually happened, reality was hard to believe. Were they disappointed? Good news is hard to keep to oneself. What did Sam want to do with the good news of his find of the farm? In the end, why didn’t he share it? Sam wants to tell someone else the good news about his fire. Who, what, and how does he want to tell? In the end, why didn’t he? Why did Sam feel “INDEPENDENT” after making the fire his fourth night away from home? Discuss the meaning of independent and its significance to the story. Ask the students about a time when they felt independent. Discuss: If you told a librarian today that you and pouring over the limbs.” Explain how you picture that sentence. Sam finds Great- grandfather’s farm from Miss Turner’s drawings. After spending the night beside the stone wall, Sam surveys the Gribley farm—his farm. List all the things he discovered. Explain why Sam ate a flower? What did Sam mean by, “I have my fire in my pocket”? Discuss: How do you know that Sam has really studied how to survive on the land— from this chapter alone? Sam said he collected almost a peck of mussels. Talk about how much is a PECK. Quiz on Chapters 1-4 Vocabulary Quiz Science Activity can count as extension lesson and science lesson “ Plant and Fungi classifications”Talk about the different plants that Sam finds and uses, list them and classify them. grandfathers, uncles, and brothers will be a good resource. Suggested items: cardboard boxes, crates, turtle shell, deer hide, leather strips, pole, acorns, deer fat you needed or wanted to learn. Have students think of times that someone took time to teach them something or visa versa Discuss with your students why Sam cried. Was it just that he was cold and hungry, or could there have been other reasons? What do you think the significance was of Sam’s “setting out directly for the highway” the next morning? were “going to trap animals and eat nuts and bulbs and berries and make (your)self a house” what do you think probably would happen? Be specific. Sam thinks, “I knew how to make fire, and that was my weapon. With fire I could conquer the Catskills.” What WAR was Sam going to wage? Was it a TANGIBLE OR INTANGIBLE war? Discuss the difference between the two words, give examples, have students give examples to gauge understanding. Closure: Chapter 1 Anticipation Guide Day 1: introduce and put together daily journal Closure : Chapter 2 Anticipation Guide If you choose to do the daily journal have students close by filling out their journal for the corresponding day. Closure : Chapter 3 Anticipation Guide If you choose to do the daily journal have students close by filling out their journal for the corresponding day. Closure : Chapter 4 Anticipation Guide If you choose to do the daily journal have students close by filling out their journal for the corresponding day. Closure : Chapter 5 &6 Anticipation Guide If you choose to do the daily journal have students close by filling out their journal for the corresponding day. My Side of the Mountain Week 2 Novel Study Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Begin each lesson by listing the following vocabulary on the board, discussing and defining Vocabulary Focus Words: 1) remote 2) obvious 3) flanges 4) cavity 5) exhausted 6) reaped 7) escorted 8) wiry 9) teetered Begin each lesson by listing the following vocabulary on the board, discussing and defining Vocabulary Focus Words: 1) shallows 2) shinnied 3) exertion 4) stroobly 5) quiver 6) nubby 7) raving Begin each lesson by listing the following vocabulary on the board, discussing and defining Vocabulary Focus Words: 1) deadfall 2) savory 3) bough 4) hoods and jesses 5) Jack-in-the-pulpit 6) wood pewees Begin each lesson by listing the following vocabulary on the board, discussing and defining Vocabulary Focus Words: 1) trillium 2) bloodroot 3) berated 4) stately 5) harassing 6) niche 7) baron 8) tethers Begin each lesson by listing the following vocabulary on the board, discussing and defining Vocabulary Focus Words: 1) loping 2) carcass 3) poaching 4) hypnotized 5) mess of fish Discuss Chapters 5 & 6 Complete Anticipation Guide Discussing Chapter 5 Why is this chapter called The Old, Old Tree? (Read the chapter as a class, or have the students partner read. I suggest starting off whole group. You can also differentiate this part, give the higher students the questions below while you walk through them with the rest of the class whole group) Sam is finding out that caring for his body is a Discussing Chapter 7 Complete Anticipation Guide Before reading Why is this chapter called The King’s Provider? (Read the chapter as a class, or have the students partner read. I suggest starting off whole group. You can also differentiate this part, give the higher students the questions below while you walk through them with the rest of the class whole group) According to Sam, why are trout easy to catch? What sign shows that trout are hungry? Research, then explain the Discussing Chapter 8 Complete Anticipation Guide Before Reading Discuss: Why is this chapter called What I Did About the First Man Who Was After Me? (Read the chapter as a class, or have the students partner read. I suggest starting off whole group. You can also differentiate this part, give the higher students the questions below while you walk through them with the rest of the class whole group) Discussing Chapter 9 Complete Anticipation Guide Before reading discuss Why is this chapter called I Learn to Season My Food? (Read the chapter as a class, or have the students partner read. I suggest starting off whole group. You can also differentiate this part, give the higher students the questions below while you walk through them with the rest of the class whole group) Describe the weasel’s “attack” on Sam. Why do you think this small animal frightened Sam? Discussing Chapter 10 Complete Anticipation Guide Before reading discuss: Why is this chapter called How a Door Came to Me? (Read the chapter as a class, or have the students partner read. I suggest starting off whole group. You can also differentiate this part, give the higher students the questions below while you walk through them with the rest of the class whole group) In the previous chapter, we read that Sam thought about needing a deer and thinking about full time job. Locate the paragraph that describes this dilemma. Discuss the REALITIES of “living” before modern conveniences. How does the author prepare a person who might want to live on the land as Sam did? How did Sam get the idea about burning out the tree? How do you know he read a variety of books? Discussing Chapter 6 Why is this chapter called I Meet One of My Own Kind and Have Trouble Getting Away? (Read the chapter as a class, or have the students partner read. I suggest starting off whole group. You can also differentiate this part, give the higher students the questions below while you walk through them with the rest of the class whole group How did Sam know something was happening in the forest? DIFFERENCE BETWEEN duck hawks and peregrine falcons. Discuss with your students: Why do you think Sam wanted a falcon so badly? Do you think he understood all of the reasons at the time? COMPARE the very end of chapter 6 with the very end of chapter 7 to see if his reasons may have changed or been expanded. If time allows take comparing and contrasting to the next level, have the students compare and contrast themselves with same using a venn diagram. Science Extension: keep the lesson going into science using the attached Classify the types of animals that Sam meets throughout the book. This can be ongoing. How do you think Sam knew what would be “savory” to his young falcon? Describe the way Frightful looked when she went to sleep. What details of Sam’s bird did he notice while he waited for the man to leave? What were clues that Sam had left in the forest to betray his presence? EXPLAIN what you think Mrs. George meant by “When I could see the man I felt to be there . . .” Discuss, then write, with your students, answers to the following: Have you ever thought of your home as a “pleasant habit”? ANALYZE with your students what mental pictures this phrase paints. IMAGINE yourself to be “perfectly free,” not having to be anywhere at any particular time. List as many reasons you can why Sam was “perfectly free.” DESCRIBE how you would live if you were “perfectly free.” “The man” was yawning and pacing outside Sam’s tree home. What What difference did it make that there were cattails and frogs in the marsh? Why do you think the author mentioned this? What did Sam “see” when the deer darted away? How did Sam keep busy the days after he got back to his tree home? What is Frightful Learning to do? What precautions does Sam take to keep himself a secret from the warden? DISCUSS with your students: Does it seem strange to you that the warden didn’t “feel” Sam the same as Sam “felt” him? That he didn’t hear the screaming of the weasel deep in the woods and go to investigate? What EVIDENCE do we have that the warden hadn’t seen the tree house opening and that he didn’t know where Sam was? Name the five senses. Discuss reasons for or against the notion that Sam may have had a “SIXTH SENSE.” Discuss causes and effects that you’ve read about in the story. Record them on the board. how he’d get one. Stealing a poached deer had not occurred to him, yet when the opportunity came he went into action. DESCRIBE all the things Sam had to do, in such a short time and without warning. THINK about something you want and need. Have you prepared for its acquisition should the time come? State the “item” and then WRITE all the preparations needed to acquire it. This chapter is full of DESCRIPTIVE ACTION VERBS. List all the action verbs from the first ten paragraphs in this chapter. Find the ONOMATOPOEIA in this chapter. Why do you think that Sam didn’t sense the hunter as he had the warden? Quiz on Chapters 5-10 Vocabulary Quiz What did Sam mean by, “She meant my strawberry supply”? If you could advise Sam, what advice would you give him regarding food and shelter? Why do you think Sam was more ANGRY, with the little old woman, than AFRAID? Explain why you think after being afraid he’d be seen and “taken back where he belonged” (in the last chapter), that he doesn’t try to cover for where he lives with the little old woman? do you think he was waiting for? WRITE at least one paragraph describing what MIGHT happen if Sam, with Frightful, and the man met? Closure : Chapter 7 Anticipation Guide If you choose to do the daily journals have students close by filling out their journal for the corresponding day. Closure : Chapter 8 Anticipation Guide If you choose to do the daily journals have students close by filling out their journal for the corresponding day. Closure : Chapter 9 Anticipation Guide If you choose to do the daily journals have students close by filling out their journal for the corresponding day. Closure : Chapter 10 Anticipation Guide If you choose to do the daily journals have students close by filling out their journal for the corresponding day. Closure : Chapter 11 & 12 Anticipation Guide If you choose to do the daily journals have students close by filling out their journal for the corresponding day. My Side of the Mountain Week 3 Novel Study: Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Begin each lesson by listing the following vocabulary on the board, discussing and defining Vocabulary Focus Words: 1) vessel 2) inspiration 3) tethered 4) furtively 5) vengeance 6) scrabbly 7) sassafras 8) pennyroyal Begin each lesson by listing the following vocabulary on the board, discussing and defining Vocabulary Focus Words: 1) abandoned 2) mantle 3) knotholes 4) axle 5) hacksaw 6) mallet 7) trophies Begin each lesson by listing the following vocabulary on the board, discussing and defining Vocabulary Focus Words: 1) sprinting 2) ferocity 3) fascinated 4) precaution 5) abandoned 6) eerie 7) cache Begin each lesson by listing the following vocabulary on the board, discussing and defining Vocabulary Focus Words: 1) moral 2) nerve-racking 3) puffballs 4) hawthorn bush Begin each lesson by listing the following vocabulary on the board, discussing and defining Vocabulary Focus Words: 1) superb dignity 2) plumage 3) accent 4) cosmetic 5) conspicuous Discuss Chapters 11 &12 Complete Anticipation Guide Chapter 11 Before you read… Why is this chapter called Frightful Learns Her ABC’s? (Read the chapter as a class, or have the students partner read. I suggest starting off whole group. You can also differentiate this part, give the higher students the questions below while you walk through them with the rest of the class whole group) ABC’s is an IDIOM. Discuss with your students what Discuss Chapters 13 Complete Anticipation Guide Before you read chapter 13 Why is this chapter called Autumn Provides Food and Loneliness? (Read the chapter as a class, or have the students partner read. I suggest starting off whole group. You can also differentiate this part, give the higher students the questions below while you walk through them with the rest of the class whole group) Describe the PERSONIFICATION in the first four paragraphs at the beginning of this chapter. (What is personified and what is “she” doing?) Discuss Chapters 14 Complete Anticipation Guide Before you read Chapter 14… Why is this chapter called We All Learn About Halloween? (Read the chapter as a class, or have the students partner read. I suggest starting off whole group. You can also differentiate this part, give the higher students the questions below while you walk through them with the rest of the class whole group) Describe the relationship between Frightful and The Baron. Use previous chapters as Discuss Chapters 15 Complete Anticipation Guide Before you read Chapter 15.. Why is this chapter called I Find Out What to Do with Hunters? (Read the chapter as a class, or have the students partner read. I suggest starting off whole group. You can also differentiate this part, give the higher students the questions below while you walk through them with the rest of the class whole group) Why did Sam feel vulnerable to hunters? Outline Sam’s activities the first week of hunting season. Discuss Chapters 16 Complete Anticipation Guide Before you read Chapter 16.. Why is this chapter called Trouble Begins? (Read the chapter as a class, or have the students partner read. I suggest starting off whole group. You can also differentiate this part, give the higher students the questions below while you walk through them with the rest of the class whole group) Discuss the chapter title (before reading). PREDICT what will happen. After reading, discuss if the title fits the narrative. learning one’s ABC’s might mean. COMPARE AND CONTRAST the way Sam tanned his hide and the amount of time spent doing it with tanning a deer hide today. (Use your research from chapter 10.) DESCRIBE how Sam spent his days during June, July and August. If you were going to train a falcon as Sam did, what would you do? LIST IN SEQUENCE the steps that Sam took. Sam has not mentioned home or even Miss Turner at the library in Delhi. EXPLAIN why you think Sam is not homesick. How did Sam get his second deer? Was he POACHING? Why do you think Sam did not refer to himself as a POACHER? Add a leather or leather-like door to your classroom tree. Discuss INSTINCT. When Frightful caught Describe how Sam was preparing to live in the tree all winter? (food, clothes, heat) What do you think was causing Sam to be lonely and think of going home? What snapped him out of his lonely thoughts? PREDICT how Sam is going to use an axle of an old wagon for his stove. Sketch a picture of a possible stove for Sam. Write a paragraph describing a time when you, or someone you know, lost a pet. Describe your feelings of helplessness. Conclude with the outcome. Read Sam’s journal entries from this chapter again. If you Kept a JOURNAL for one month what interesting and historical information about your life would appear. needed. Sam decides to have a Halloween Party. What food did he spread out, and what guests did he intend to come? On which date did the guests finally arrive? List all the animals that ended up coming. In the first ten paragraphs of this chapter, there are many DESCRIPTIVE VERBS about Frightful, the squirrels, and The Baron. List as many as you can. Use one word to describe Sam’s Halloween guests. SUMMARIZE how they left his home and “yard.” “Might is Right.” Discuss with your students what they think this means. What did it mean to Sam? How did Sam show his “might” to the animals? There is a special kind of moon known as the “harvest moon.” INVESTIGATE and report on what it looks like and when it occurs. What did Sam picture in his mind when he saw the deer drop dead on the Gribley farm site? Having read this far in the book, you know how long it takes to take care of the meat on a deer and then make the hide into leather. If you had been Sam, would you have been so eager to get another deer? Explain your reasons. Discuss with your students the following: How many deer did Sam get during hunting season? What did they provide for him? Sam also had rabbit-fur underwear. In the previous chapter, the author says that Sam “scraped the skins of the day” yet doesn’t give any details about where he got these skins. SPECULATE how Sam got his underwear. Sam got to the last deer before the hunter did. We have no details as to how he managed it. WRITE at least one paragraph which details how Sam got to the third deer and hid it before the hunter found it. Discuss TRUTH IS STRANGER THAN FICTION. How does that maxim fit this chapter? Sam said he didn’t want to attract any attention. Imagine how Sam looks. (When was the last time he had a haircut from Miss Turner? What was his mirror? What did he cut his own hair with?) Why do you think he wanted to go to town on a day that he knew the library was closed? Discuss why you think Sam is lonesome for “people” company. Give specific examples from this chapter. (How long has he been away from his family? How long since he talked with Bando?) Discuss with your students all that Sam did ALONE to have the wardrobe he has. How would your students feel about themselves if they had done all that? WRITE at least one paragraph describing an accomplishment that you have achieved totally on your own. COMPARE AND CONTRAST Sam’s losses and gains in the time he has been on his own in the Catskill Mountains. Make as complete a list her first prey, was it instinct or was it Sam’s training? Chapter 12… Why is this chapter called I Find a Real Live Man? (Read the chapter as a class, or have the students partner read. I suggest starting off whole group. You can also differentiate this part, give the higher students the questions below while you walk through them with the rest of the class whole group) Explain what you think the author means by, “One of the gasping joys of summer . . .”? Frightful’s senses are extraordinarily sharp. DESCRIBE two instances in this chapter when Frightful alerted Sam to something before Sam knew it. Sam has had a taste of living with as possible. Quiz On chapters 11 -16 another human being. Calculate how long Sam has been away from home and how long it has been since he has had a conversation with a person. PREDICT if Sam will make it through the winter alone. Give good reasons for your answer. A police siren and an unshaven man with torn clothes. How did Sam put the two together? HYPOTHESIZE or make your own theory about the siren. The author makes some subtle INFERENCES in this chapter about Bando and Sam’s feelings. How do you know Bando admired Sam? How do you know Sam was lonely? How do you know Sam was more connected with his own species— humans—than with his animal friends? Answer with Bando’s and Sam’s actions, rather than stated thoughts. Closure : Chapter 13 Anticipation Guide If you choose to do the daily journals have students close by filling out their journal for the corresponding day. Closure : Chapter 14 Anticipation Guide If you choose to do the daily journals have students close by filling out their journal for the corresponding day. Closure : Chapter 15 Anticipation Guide If you choose to do the daily journals have students close by filling out their journal for the corresponding day. Closure : Chapter 16 Anticipation Guide If you choose to do the daily journals have students close by filling out their journal for the corresponding day. Closure : Chapter 17 & 18 Anticipation Guide If you choose to do the daily journals have students close by filling out their journal for the corresponding day. My Side of the Mountain Week 4 Novel Study Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Begin each lesson by listing the following vocabulary on the board, discussing and defining Vocabulary Focus Words: 1) quarry 2) originated 3) bole 4) ingenious 5) sensationalism 6) serenade 7) ingenuity 8) banked 9) sired 10) elegance Begin each lesson by listing the following vocabulary on the board, discussing and defining Vocabulary Focus Words: 1) fatigue 2) copse 3) shrews 4) penetrated 5) treacherous 6) undercoverts 7) resilient 8) forage 9) cached Begin each lesson by listing the following vocabulary on the board, discussing and defining Vocabulary Focus Words: 1) amateur 2) falconer 3) obtainable 4) conceded 5) forum 6) sociable 7) untoward Begin each lesson by listing the following vocabulary on the board, discussing and defining Vocabulary Focus Words: 1) boredom Begin each lesson by listing the following vocabulary on the board, discussing and defining Vocabulary Focus Words: 1) resounding 2) decent 3) hordes 4) self-sufficient Chapter 17 & 18 Before Reading: Why is this chapter called I Pile Up Wood and Go on with Winter? (Read the chapter as a class, or have the student’s partner read. I suggest starting off whole group. You can also differentiate this part, give the higher students the questions below while you walk through them with the rest of the class whole group) Calculate how long Chapter 19 Before Reading: Why is this chapter called I Look at Winter and Find Spring in the Snow? (Read the chapter as a class, or have the student’s partner read. I suggest starting off whole group. You can also differentiate this part, give the higher students the questions below while you walk through them with the rest of the class whole group) NECESSITY IS THE MOTHER OF INVENTION. Relate this maxim to Sam’s making snowshoes for himself. Explain what Sam meant by, “I lived close to the weather.” INTERPRET what Sam meant by, “ . . . the forest sparkled and shone in Chapter 20 Before Reading: Why is this chapter called The Spring in the Winter and the Beginning of My Story’s End? (Read the chapter as a class, or have the student’s partner read. I suggest starting off whole group. You can also differentiate this part, give the higher students the questions below while you walk through them with the rest of the class whole group) Discuss with your students all the signs that show that spring is Chapter 21 Before Reading: Why is this chapter called I Cooperate with the Ending? (Read the chapter as a class, or have the student’s partner read. I suggest starting off whole group. You can also differentiate this part, give the higher students the questions below while you walk through them with the rest of the class whole group) SPECULATE as to what you think is happening Chapter 22 Before Reading: Why is this chapter called The City Comes to Me? (Read the chapter as a class, or have the student’s partner read. I suggest starting off whole group. You can also differentiate this part, give the higher students the questions below while you walk through them with the rest of the class whole group) Sam has been on his own a year now. The reader has experienced Sam cut and stacked wood, and give the dates. Read the words carefully in this chapter and then compare with chapter one and read carefully. The author uses SIMILE to compare something with Sam’s nervousness in cutting and piling wood. What is it? Sam says that living on a mountaintop in winter was “fun and wonderfulness.” Do you agree or disagree? WRITE a paragraph giving at least five specific reasons for your position. Chapter 18: Why is this chapter called I Learn About Birds and People? (Read the chapter as a class, or have the student’s partner read. I suggest starting off whole group. You can also differentiate this part, give the higher students the questions below while you walk through them with the rest of the class whole group) cruel splendor.” What health problems was Sam beginning to experience? What did he think caused it? What did Sam eat that “cured” him? What influence did his mother have on him? What was the first sign that told Sam spring was coming? What was the first new life in the neighborhood? Optional: Try to follow Sam’s directions to make a snowshoe. emerging in your area. Research to find out what skunk cabbage is. Find an example of EXAGGERATION in paragraphs four through nine. What do you think gave Matt Spell the idea that Sam was the “wild boy” while Sam was feeding him that fantastic story? Sam said he liked Matt. What made Sam lie so blatantly to him then? Discuss a time(s) when you carried on an ARGUMENT in your mind. Write a paragraph of dialogue between the “persons” in your mind. (What was the topic? What was the decision? Who won the debate?) Give reasons and/or evidences to prove why you DO OR DO NOT think Sam is ready to be found. to Sam. Be detailed. Does the change make you sad or happy? ANALYZE the book in the following areas: a) Conflict. Is there a struggle between opposing forces? What is it? Explain the struggle as EXTERNAL OR INTERNAL or both. b) Suspense. Do you have a feeling of uncertainty regarding the action or outcome of the story? What was it that kept your interest if it wasn’t suspense? c) Type (genre). Is this book purely fiction or non- fiction? Explain what is fiction, and what is non-fiction in this book. Discuss: What is there about this story that makes it timeless? everything that Sam has experienced. How has the author been preparing the reader for the story’s end? Has the author left you hanging, or have all the loose ends of the story been tied up? Using at least three sentences, state how you feel about leaving Sam? Rewrite an alternate ending for chapter twenty-two. Make a satisfying ending that doesn’t need a sequel. What about Sam’s family members whom we have not met previously? How would you handle the new characters that were introduced in chapter twenty-one? Discuss how Sam felt about being a celebrity? How would you have handled the reporters and photographers differently? Unit Test Skill Test : Compare and Contrast Explain how Sam’s attitude has changed since chapter 16? What was the reason for the change? Explain how the winter chickadees were like the people in Sam’s neighborhood in NYC. Reread the last sentence of paragraph six. Who is Sam thinking about—Mr. Bracket, the chickadee or Mr. Bracket of Third Avenue? What was the menu for Christmas dinner? What gifts did Sam make for Bando? Define PREMISE. The author states, in this chapter, the premise for this book. What is it? COMPARE AND CONTRAST Sam and Bando’s greeting with the greeting of Sam and his father. Explain the difference. Explain how you know that Sam’s father is proud of him. Closure : Chapter 19 Anticipation Guide If you choose to do the daily journals have students close by filling out their journal for the corresponding day. Closure : Chapter 20 Anticipation Guide If you choose to do the daily journals have students close by filling out their journal for the corresponding day. Closure : Chapter 21 Anticipation Guide If you choose to do the daily journals have students close by filling out their journal for the corresponding day. Closure : Chapter 22 Anticipation Guide If you choose to do the daily journals have students close by filling out their journal for the corresponding day. Closure : Unit Test My Side of the Mountain Week 5 Novel Study: Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday GRANDFATHER MOUNTAIN FIELD TRIP Wrap up Activities or Finish Unit Test Options: See Student Project Options Below Movie: My Side of the Mountain Compare and Contrast book to film Wrap up Activities or Finish Unit Test Options: See Student Project Options Below Wrap up Activities or Finish Unit Test Options: See Student Project Options Below STUDENT PROJECTS Students may choose any projects from the list below. All projects may be done individually or as a group. Students can use art/graphics, displays, costumes or videos, or any combination to illustrate their projects. PRESENTATIONS 1. Create a timeline on a large piece of paper representing key events within this book. Present your timeline to the class. 2. Interview fellow students and other adults in your school or community who have read this book. Create a series of questions that could include their opinion of this book and which part of this book they liked best and why. Present this information to the class. ART/GRAPHICS 3. On a large piece of paper, draw scenes of persons, places or events within this book. Walk your classmates through this book as you present your artistic representation. 4. On a large piece of paper, draw a map of the Catskill Mountain wilderness where Sam lives. Include major locations keyed to important specific events within this book. Use your creative imagination to develop your vision of specific locations. Make the map large enough to present in class. 5. Develop a shadow box showing a specific event or theme portrayed in this book. 6. Design a cover for this book. It must include the title, author and some creative artistic representation. 7. Make a collage of persons, places, or events represented in this book. 8. Create a quote poster of significant phrases within this book. Feel free to include an artistic representation of the quotes. WRITING PROJECTS 9. Write a poem that captures the theme of this book and present it to the class for discussion and evaluation. 10. Pretend you are a book critic for a famous kid’s magazine. You are going to write a book review of My Side of the Mountain and tell other students what you like and don’t like about the book. 11. Make a front page for a newspaper. Use the headline, “WILD BOY LIVING IN CATSKILLS” Write what you think should be in the article.