Kira Kira Literature Kit Gr 5 6

Experience what it's like to rise up and fill a hole left by the loss of a family member. Help guide students through the novel with vocabulary prompts and comprehension activities. Imagine the challenges faced by a Japanese-American family moving from Iowa to Georgia in the 1950s. Explore the concept of prejudice and identify different groups who might experience this. Complete passages from the text with their missing vocabulary words. Reflect on the incident where Katie decides to shoplift and describe the worst thing about the experience. Find examples from the novel of foreshadowing and imagine to what it could be predicting. List the events comprising an incident in the novel in the order that it happened in a Flow Chart. Aligned to your State Standards, additional crossword, word search, comprehension quiz and answer key are also included. About the Novel: Kira-Kira (kee ra kee ra) is a Japanese word for glittering; shining. This unforgettable story is a coming-of-age tale of one family’s difficulties in adapting to a post-World War II society that is reluctant to welcome a Japanese family that is laboring in Georgia’s poultry plants. The story features Katie, her older sister Lynn and their younger brother, Sammy. When Lynn grows ill and eventually dies, it makes Katie realize that she must assume even more responsibility. Removed from the shadow of her high-achieving older sister, she even begins to improve in her schoolwork. This Newbery Medal winning-story deals with family relationships and the illness and death of a close family member in a sensitive, realistic manner.

Strangers become a community in this heartwarming story about overcoming prejudices and finding a common ground. The vocabulary lists and quizzes create a complete resource that saves time while preparing these lessons. Students make predictions on how certain characters might be connected to each other. Analyze Leona's comments about her experience dealing with officials to characterize her feelings towards them. Answer multiple choice questions about Virgil's relationship with his father. Students explore Sae Young's actions when the thunderstorm fills the rain collection barrels and relates this back to the themes of the book. Imagine being Virgil's father and create a business plan for the baby lettuce idea. Detail how the setting of the book evolves with the characters in a transformation graphic organizer. Aligned to your State Standards and written to Bloom's Taxonomy, additional crossword, word search, comprehension quiz and answer key are also included. About the Novel: Seedfolks follows the intertwining stories of several neighbors as they break down barriers and form a community. A vacant lot in Cleveland, Ohio is not the perfect spot for Kim to plant her lima beans. It's too cold and there's not very much sun. She does this anyways in honor of her father. Little does she know that this action will intrigue the neighbors she knows only as strangers, and cause a ripple effect throughout the neighborhood. Each chapter follows a different neighbor and their personal journey that brought them to this vacant lot. People of varying ages, genders, races and religions come together with a shared goal of growing their item of choice. Some want to start a business, while others want to win back a lost love. The garden blooms from a segregated group of individual plots into a real community as peoples' guards are lowered and they begin to really know one another. When the season ends, only time will tell whether this new community will thrive.

Enter a strange world of time travel and mystery, all surrounding one girl. Use a variety of activities to help students figure out the mystery of the novel. Predict what will happen with Julia and Miranda's relationship once their conflict comes out in the open. Figure out what book Miranda is reading to Belle based on the clues from the story. Identify the instructions given to Miranda in the second note. Write sentences using vocabulary words found in the reading. Explain who the laughing man is, his purpose, and the steps he took to prepare Miranda for his mission. Explore racial prejudice in the novel through the eyes of Miranda, and write a letter to Jimmy sharing your feelings on the subject. Aligned to your State Standards, additional crossword, word search, comprehension quiz and answer key are also included. About the Novel: When You Reach Me is a Newbery Medal-winning story about a young girl and her New York City world. Miranda lives in a run-down apartment with her mother in New York City during the 1970s. Propelled by interesting characters, Miranda’s world starts to unravel, as her friend Sal gets punched by a kid on the street for no reason and stops talking to Miranda; her mother’s hidden emergency key is stolen; and a mysterious note arrives claiming to save her friend’s life. In the background is a subplot involving Miranda’s mother’s upcoming appearance on the television show, The $20,000 Pyramid.

Spend the summer with Sara and the challenges she experiences while discovering herself. New ideas are provided for checking student comprehension of the novel. Set a purpose for reading by discussing the roles of family and the difficulties within. Describe how Sara sees her life as suddenly changing. State Sara and Wanda's differing opinions on Sara's haircut. Become a detective and determine whether Sara has sufficient evidence to accuse Joe of stealing Charlie's watch. Match vocabulary words from the novel to their synonyms. Step into the shoes of Joe and write a letter to an advice columnist about Sara and her rude behavior. List the problems faced by Sara and the possible solutions in a Problem-Solution Chart. Aligned to your State Standards, additional crossword, word search, comprehension quiz and answer key are also included. About the Novel: A classic coming-of-age story of fourteen-year-old, Sara, who lives in a small town in West Virginia. This Newbery Medal winning-story centers on Sara and her troubled relationship with her remote father, her perfect older sister, and Joe Melby—a boy from school. All of these problems are quickly placed on the backburner when Charlie, her mentally disabled brother, wanders out of the house in the middle of the night and goes missing. While resolving this serious crisis, Sara discovers a great deal of herself. When she and Joe find Charlie safe and sound, Sara comes to grips with the knowledge that she is comfortable with who she is and who she is becoming.

Gain a fresh perspective of the migration of the Navaho people through the eyes of a young girl. Unique and varied materials supplement a study of this novel. Students are asked to describe what they already know of the Navaho people. Write the name of the character next to each quote from the story. Identify the cause or effect of each event in the book. Finish off sentences with vocabulary words found in the novel. Explain how Rosita was able to adapt to life in a town whereas Bright Morning was not. Students do some research to find the meaning and origin of their name. Gather facts and complete a character analysis of Tall Boy. Aligned to your State Standards, additional crossword, word search, comprehension quiz and answer key are also included. About the Novel: Sing Down the Moon is a Newbery Honor-winning story told through the perspective of a young Navaho girl. Fourteen-year-old Bright Morning takes her family's sheep to graze one spring day. While tending to the flock, she is captured by Spanish Slavers and sold into service. Fortunately, she is able to escape and return home. Unfortunately, her home is promptly taken from her as her tribe is forced out of their canyon in Arizona and relocated to Fort Sumner in New Mexico. The long walk of the Navaho people is described through the eyes of Bright Morning, who sees the migration as the end of her people.

Discover firsthand what it’s like for refugees entering the US in this coming-of-age story of one girl’s struggle to belong. This resource has everything you will need in one packet, from pre-assessment material, to comprehension questions incorporating vocabulary. Reflect on Hà’s mother’s decision of having to choose a different country to live in. Put the events that describe Hà’s first day of school in the order that they occur. Describe what Miss Scott shows to the class, and how Hà reacts to it. Predict whether the family will learn what happened to their father. Put yourself in Hà’s shoes and imagine what you would wish for during Têt. Explore the concept of language and how difficult it can be to learn by researching common idioms used in your language. Aligned to your State Standards and written to Bloom's Taxonomy, our worksheets incorporate a variety of scaffolding strategies along with additional crossword, word search, comprehension quiz and answer key. About the Novel: Inside Out & Back Again follows 10-year-old Hà and her family as they struggle as refugees in 1970’s America. The story begins in 1975 Saigon. Hà’s father has been missing for years since leaving to fight in the war of Vietnam. The war is now over and the Americans are leaving. Communists from the North threaten the family’s safety and freedom. They come to the hard decision of leaving their beloved home to seek shelter elsewhere. They settle on America, and with the sponsorship of a kind “cowboy”, the family start their new home in Alabama. Their struggles don’t stop there, however. Their first task is to learn English. Hà struggles with this as she enters school in America. She is met with bullies and miscommunication in language and culture. With the help of a kind neighbor, Hà quickly learns how to survive in her new home. She begins to make friends at school, and her family begin to prosper as well. The day comes when the family must make the difficult decision regarding her father, but nothing will stop them from making the most of their new lives in America.

Learn the importance of having skills for wilderness survival. Offer students a variety of objective and subjective questions. Get a clear understanding of the setting by comparing 1768 with today. Explore the concept of stereotyping with Matt's interaction with Attean. Students write an alternate ending to the incident with the bear that reflects how they would have reacted in that situation. Match vocabulary words found in the novel with their meanings. Write an editorial for the local newspaper for or against the use of leg traps. Compare Attean's, Matt's and today's society and culture by finding similarities and differences between food, housing and clothing. Aligned to your State Standards, additional crossword, word search, comprehension quiz and answer key are also included. About the Novel: A story of wilderness survival in 18th Century Maine, about a young boy who is caught between two worlds. Shortly after Matt and his father finish building a cabin on their new settlement, Matt finds himself alone in the Maine wilderness with his nearest neighbor several miles away. With his father returning to civilization to get their family, Matt’s adventures begin. Matt is stung nearly to death by a swarm of bees, but manages to survive with the help of two local Natives—Attean and his grandfather, Saknis. As the summer progresses, the two boys have a number of adventures together, including killing an angry bear. In autumn, Matt is rejoined with his parents just after the snow flies.

Experience the hardships of starting over during the Great Depression. The activities act as a great jumping-off point for teaching in a student-guided manner. Students put themselves in Esperanza's shoes and describe her changing viewpoints as she becomes exposed to the lives of those poorer than she once was. Determine whether a strike will cause conflict later in the story based on what is already known. Put events in order as they happen immediately following the death of Esperanza's father. Make predictions on the outcome of Esperanza's attempts to get a job. Compare the mythological story of the phoenix to that of Esperanza. Compare the different settings of the book, from Esperanza's home in Mexico to the work camps in California. Aligned to your State Standards, additional crossword, word search, comprehension quiz and answer key are also included. About the Novel: Esperanza Rising tells the story of a young girl who's world gets turned upside-down, and must flee to America to start a new life. Esperanza Ortega grew up in luxury on her father's ranch in Mexico. She had servants, nice clothes and lavish parties. Her sheltered life comes crashing down when her father is killed by renegades while tending to a broken fence on his property. Their home is left to Esperanza and her mother, but the land is left to her father's stepbrothers. After their home is burned down, Esperanza, her mother and a few loyal servants flee to America to start better lives. Unfortunately for them, it's the Great Depression and their new lives won't be so great. Esperanza is immediately flung into poverty and struggles to adjust. When they make it to the States, Esperanza falls into a deep depression. When her mother becomes sick, Esperanza must grow up and learn to appreciate what she has. This riches-to-rags story shows that it's not what you possess that bring you happiness, but the people you share it with.