Introduction Teacher Resources Student Resources Project Main Menu  Web-Based Thematic Unit: The Giver- Teacher Resources  This web-based thematic unit has a wide range of activities for levels 5-7. On this page you'll find an overview of the unit as well as lesson outlines and links to student activities. Establishing the Learning Environment Before reading the book: Start with having students brainstorm some imperfections in our world as a large group. Write students' ideas on the board. After discussing some of these imperfections, ask students to think about one thing that they could remove from the world and what effect it would have. Students should write a journal entry (1-2 paragraphs) to answer this question. Each student should then share their writing with the rest of the class aloud concentrating on certain speaking skills as they share. (eye contact, volume) You may want to have students concentrate on writing introduction and conclusion sentences or just paragraph writing in general. Resources Collect a variety of novels focusing on Utopian or Anti-Utopian societies for higher-level readers Animal Farm by George Orwell Brave New World by Aldous Huxley 1984 by George Orwell Collect a variety of novels in the fantasy genre for lower-level readers A Wrinkle In Time by Madeline L'Engle Any of the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling The Dark is Rising series by Susan Cooper  Computer Resources About the author 1 About the author 2 About the author 3 About the author 4  Teacher Information http://www.randomhouse.com/teacherssbdd/give.html http://wwwcarolhurst.com/titles/giver.html http://connecting students.com/literacy/thegiver.htm http://www.eduplace.com/kids/book/grades 7-8/ Technology Setup Schedule computer access for projects and Internet access. Schedule use of scanner, audiotape, and vcr. Use Gaggle (http://gaggle.net/) to create email addresses for your students. Use sites such as epals (http://epals.com) and Proteacher (http://proteacher.com) to identify a collaborative partner classroom. Use sites such as Lightspan's GlobalSchoolhouse (http://www.gsn.org) to check for ongoing collaborative projects associated with the books or themes. Classroom Management and Activity Guidelines Classroom activities have been provided as part of this thematic unit. A lesson overview has been provided for each activity. For each lesson, you'll find a set of benchmarks, a suggested timing of the lesson, specific pages connecting the book to the activities, performance assessments, and other activity ideas. Each activity page contains an introduction, task, process and resources, project guidelines, and a conclusion. Activity 1 Overview: Cooperative Learning Groups - Create Your Own Society Project Benchmarks Establishes and adjusts purposes for reading understand, interpret, enjoy, predict outcomes, answer specific questions, and form opinions perform a task Identifies specific devices an author uses to accomplish purpose literary form appeals to particular audience Uses a variety of strategies to define and extend understanding of word meaning uses context clues to infer meaning phonetic analysis Reflects on what has been learned after reading and formulates ideas, opinions, and personal responses to texts forms ideas, opinions, and responses to text creates a picture of what was read Uses specific strategies to clear up confusing parts of written material rereads, summarizes, uses context clues, seeks peer help to understand Timing: This project can be introduced at the beginning of the book and continued throughout the reading. By the end of the reading the project should be completed. Book Connections: The overall comparison of societies. Performance Assessments: Rubric - link to the rubric page Other Activity Ideas: This project can be linked to social studies by using maps, studying different governments, studying different societies/cultures, etc. It can also be linked to Science. The project contains a part about waste disposal which could be integrated into a pollution unit. The part of the project concerning employment could be included into a careers class or even a character education class. Activity 2 Overview: Students will research their family traditions, create their own, and also research others' traditions in other countries. Benchmarks Establishes and adjusts purposes for reading personal fulfillment or interests, understands, enjoys, research, and perform a task Uses a variety of strategies to definge and extend understanding of word meaning uses context clues to infer meaning Reflects on what has been learned after reading and formulates ideas, opinions, and personal responses to texts. journals and projects, offers insight, uses personal experiences to make predictions about content. Uses specific strategies to clear up confusing parts of written materials. summarizes, makes a connection between prior knowledge and text, Understands story elements character (traits, goals, motivations, changes, action, internal and external conflict) Uses a variety of strategies to respond to literature reflects, shares response, summarizes, compares and contrasts Understands explicit and implicit information in texts topic, generalizations, author's purpose, venn diagrams, KWL, relevant facts Timing: This activity should be completed after reading chapter 5. Performance Assessments: Rubric - link to the rubric page Other Activity Ideas: This activity could link into family trees or other family research. The students also may be interested in how the rituals and traditions started and why. Activity 3 Overview: Studetnts will research the underground railroad and create a poster of Harriet Tubman's journey in comparison to Jonas's at the end of the novel. Benchmarks Establishes and adusts purpose for reading personal fulfillment or interests, information, interpret, predict outcomes, answer specific questions, research, perform a task Reflects on what has been learned after reading and formulates ideas, opinions, and personal responses to texts projects, creates a picture of what was read Uses specific strategies to clear up confusing parts of written materials rereads, uses context clues, consults another source, seeks peer help, makes a connection between prior knowledge and text, predicts. Represents abstract concepts and generalizations as mental pictures Uses encyclopedia and atlas Understands story elements- character traits, internal and external conflict, plot (climax, turning point),setting, and theme. Understand use of specific literary devices tone, mood, voice, foreshadowing, flashback Makes inferences and draws conclusions about literature- missing details, cause and effect relationship Uses a variety of strategies to respond to literature reflects, shares response, compares and contrasts Understands explicit and implicit information in texts relevant facts, author's purpose, patterns of organization (venn diagram). Timing:This should be discussed and completed after reading the novel. Book Connections: This activity relates to chapter 21-23 of the novel. Teacher Resources: The resource links given on Activity 3 are also beneficial to the teacher as well as the websites listed below. They will give you any information you may need to continue or supplement this project. They have many links of their own, try them! Slave Ship General info--tons of it!! Performance Assessments: Rubric - link to the rubric page Other Activity Ideas: Students may want to research another journey in our country's history. They may want to research another African American female who has made a difference in the United States. It would be great to have some multicultural books on hand such as "The Skin I'm In" or any biographies or autobiographies for students who are interested in learning more. You may want to offer extra credit to those who have an interest in taking this project further.   Developed by Leigh McEwen, 04/07/00.