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.

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.

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.

kira-kira (kee' ra kee' ra): glittering; shining Glittering. That's how Katie Takeshima's sister, Lynn, makes everything seem. The sky is kira-kira because its color is deep but see-through at the same time. The sea is kira-kira for the same reason. And so are people's eyes. When Katie and her family move from a Japanese community in Iowa to the Deep South of Georgia, it's Lynn who explains to her why people stop them on the street to stare. And it's Lynn who, with her special way of viewing the world, teaches Katie to look beyond tomorrow. But when Lynn becomes desperately ill, and the whole family begins to fall apart, it is up to Katie to find a way to remind them all that there is always something glittering -- kira-kira -- in the future. Luminous in its persistence of love and hope, Kira-Kira is Cynthia Kadohata's stunning debut in middle-grade fiction.

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.

Learning to take personal responsibility is an important step on the road to becoming a self-sufficient person. Students get help Coping with Life by learning how to adapt to things that are beyond their control as well as having a positive response to a setback. Learn effective Stress Management techniques by mapping out different stress-inducers and ways to reduce them. Help overcome the stigma and discrimination surrounding Mental & Physical Health through knowledge and local mental health resources. What is consent and how to maintain Healthy Relationships. Learn the art of the compromise with simple steps to master Cohabitation & Family Life. Be prepared for Emergencies, Self-Defense & First Aid with steps to perform CPR. Comprised of reading passages, graphic organizers, real-world activities, crossword, word search and comprehension quiz, our resource combines high interest concepts with low vocabulary to ensure all learners comprehend the essential skills required in life. All of our content is reproducible and aligned to your State Standards and are written to Bloom's Taxonomy.

Get a sense of the remarkable injustices experienced by both horses and the people of the day. Incorporate well-thought-out questions that encourage students to really think about their answers. Determine the setting of the novel based only on a few details from the story. Prepare for the reading by investigating the purpose of the spur in horseback riding. Finish sentences from the book with their missing vocabulary words. Identify Joe's error in judgment when tending to Black Beauty. Explore ways some of the cruelties experienced by the horses in this novel could have been prevented. Write a short book review of the novel, and post it online. Choose a major event from the book and complete a concept wheel with details on who, what, when, where, and why. Aligned to your State Standards, additional crossword, word search, comprehension quiz and answer key are also included. About the Novel: Nothing could defeat the spirit of this gentle and courageous horse, Black Beauty! One of the most endearing stories of all time is set in England during the mid-1800s, and is told from the perspective of its main character. Black Beauty shares his adventures from his days as a young colt in the pastures of Farmer Grey, through different owners and into his twilight years. Tragedy seems to shape the course of Black Beauty’s life as he learns much of the world through the friendships with different horses: the tragic life of Ginger, the brave and noble Captain, and the fun-loving Merrylegs.