James and the Giant Peach is a fabulous, classic novel by Roald Dahl. True to the Roald Dahl style, it is quirky, funny, and absolutely absurd. Everything students love in a book! It is a great book to use in your classroom or homeschool for a whole class novel study, small book groups, or individual book studies.
Roald Dahl is the expert at writing fantastical stories that grab the reader’s attention. He makes you empathize with his downtrodden main character, and the reader becomes attached as the character goes on to great victory. In between, the language and the fantasy entrances you.
From the Book Jacket:
When James accidentally drops some magic crystals by the old peach tree, strange things start to happen. The peach at the top of the tree begins to grow, and before long it’s as big as a house. When James discovers a secret entranceway into the fruit and crawls inside, he meets wonderful new friends–the Old-Green-Grasshopper, the dainty Ladybug, and the Centipede of the multiple boots. After years of feeling like an outsider in his aunts’ house, James finally found a place where he belongs. With a snip of the stem, the peach household starts rolling away–and the adventure begins!
I offer a complete novel study to accompany James and the Giant Peach for use in the classroom or homeschool. The unit includes both a printable format and a Google Drive™ format for use in a paperless classroom or with Google Classroom.
Your students will be enchanted by James and his cast of friends, they won’t want to put the book down through the adventures James and his friends encounter on their great peach journey. They will cheer as everything turns out peachy for James. This is a great story to use for fun and class bonding. It sends a great message about not accepting the cards that are given, but to strive for the unimaginable, no matter how absurd it may be!
Billy is not one to back down from a challenge. Now, the challenge is to eat 15 worms in 15 days. Will Billy succeed? How will his creativity make this challenge more palatable? How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell will show just how creative and courageous Billy can be! It is a great book to use in your classroom or homeschool for a whole class novel study, small book groups, or individual book studies.
For us adults, the premise of eating worms is gross, for your students, it is hilarious and encourages them to keep reading. The gross-out factor is enough to pull in even the most reluctant reader in your class!
From the Book Jacket:
Because of a bet, Billy is in the uncomfortable position of having to eat fifteen worms in fifteen days. The worms are supplied by his opponent, whose motto is “The bigger and juicier, the better!” At first, Billy’s problem is whether or not he can swallow the worm placed before him, even with a choice of condiments from peanut butter to horseradish. But later it looks as if Billy will win, and the challenge becomes getting to the worm to eat it. Billy’s family, after checking with the doctor, takes everything in stride. They even help Billy through his gastronomic ordeal, which twists and turns with each new day, leaving the outcome of the bet continually in doubt.
I offer a complete novel study to accompany How to Eat Fried Worms for use in the classroom or homeschool. The unit includes both a printable format and a Google Drive™ format for use in a paperless classroom or with Google Classroom.
The idea of eating worms is gross, but this book is so much more than that. It’s about perseverance through a challenge, sticking to your word, and using your creativity and smarts to overcome. This is a great message for your upper elementary students.
Frindle is the first novel by award-winning author, Andrew Clements. It is a great book to use in your classroom or homeschool for a whole class novel study, small book groups, or individual book studies.
Nick is a fifth-grader who is full of creative ideas but isn’t the best at executing them in the most appropriate ways. He’s a student that many kids can relate to and the book has a great lesson about how you can use your creativity for good to lead you to great success.
From the Book Jacket:
Is Nick Allen a troublemaker? He really just likes to liven things up at school — and he’s always had plenty of great ideas. When Nick learns some interesting information about how words are created, suddenly he’s got the inspiration for his best plan ever…the frindle. Who says a pen has to be called a pen? Why not call it a frindle? Things begin innocently enough as Nick gets his friends to use the new word. Then other people in town start saying frindle. Soon the school is in an uproar, and Nick has become a local hero. His teacher wants Nick to put an end to all this nonsense, but the funny thing is frindle doesn’t belong to Nick anymore. The new word is spreading across the country, and there’s nothing Nick can do to stop it.
I offer a complete novel study to accompany Frindle for use in the classroom or homeschool. The unit includes both a printable format and a Google Drive™ format for use in a paperless classroom or with Google Classroom.
Frindle explores the question of how language is created, used, and changed. It shows how even a fifth-grader can influence how we use language. I encourage you to introduce your students to Nick and the almighty Frindle! You will love where it takes you!
The Bad Beginning is the first book in Lemony Snicket’s, A Series of Unfortunate Events. This series is a quirky tale that many students will be drawn to. It is a great book to use in your classroom or homeschool for a whole class novel study, small book groups, or individual book studies.
The Bad Beginning was first published in 1999 and has since been made into a film and a Netflix series. The book is narrated by Lemony Snicket who tells the tale of Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire, three orphans who have some really bad luck! Lemony Snicket starts the tale by warning his reader to not read the book:
Dear Reader,
I’m sorry to say that the book you are holding in your hands is extremely unpleasant. It tells an unhappy tale about three very unlucky children. Even though they are charming and clever, the Baudelaire siblings lead lives filled with misery and woe. From the very first page of this book when the children are at the beach and receive terrible news, continuing on through the entire story, disaster lurks at their heels. One might say they are magnets for misfortune.
In this short book alone, the three youngsters encounter a greedy and repulsive villain, itchy clothing, a disastrous fire, a plot to steal their fortune, and cold porridge for breakfast.
It is my sad duty to write down these unpleasant tales, but there is nothing stopping you from putting this book down at once and reading something happy, if you prefer that sort of thing.
With all due respect, Lemony Snicket
What better way to make students want to read more than by telling them not to! I offer a complete novel study to accompany The Bad Beginning for use in the classroom or homeschool. The unit includes both a printable format and a Google Drive™ format for use in a paperless classroom or with Google Classroom.
The Bad Beginning is a great novel to hook students into wanting more. The quirkiness and mystery are enough to engage even the most reluctant of readers. There are twelve additional books in the series for students to read on their own.
Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli explores the power of individuality. It is a great book to use in your classroom or homeschool for a whole class novel study, small book groups, or individual book studies.
Stargirl was first published in 2000. Stargirl showcases nonconformity vs. the tense and emotional desire to be popular. It drives the messages that popularity is fleeting and cruel, and it’s always better to stay true to yourself to succeed.
Summary of Stargirl:
*From the book jacket
Stargirl. From the day she arrives at quiet Mica High in a burst of color and sound, the hallways hum with the murmur of “Stargirl, Stargirl.” She captures Leo Borlock’ s heart with just one smile. She sparks a school-spirit revolution with just one cheer. The students of Mica High are enchanted. At first.
Then they turn on her. Stargirl is suddenly shunned for everything that makes her different, and Leo, panicked and desperate with love, urges her to become the very thing that can destroy her: normal. In this celebration of nonconformity, Newbery Medalist Jerry Spinelli weaves a tense, emotional tale about the perils of popularity and the thrill and inspiration of first love.
I offer a complete novel study to accompany Stargirl for use in the classroom or homeschool. The unit includes both a printable format and a Google Drive™ format for use in a paperless classroom or with Google Classroom.
Stargirl is a great novel to use to help early adolescents understand that the drive to be “popular” isn’t worth betraying yourself. What makes you special is what makes you great.
