How to Teach Ban This Book by Alan Gratz: A Novel That Sparks Critical Thinking

by Shelley | English/Language Arts, Novel Studies

Looking for a high-interest novel that will get your students reading, thinking, discussing, and writing? Ban This Book by Alan Gratz is an excellent choice for upper elementary and middle school readers.

This engaging novel introduces students to big ideas such as book challenges, censorship, freedom of expression, access to literature, personal responsibility, and standing up for your beliefs through the story of Amy Anne Ollinger.

Whether you’re planning a Ban This Book novel study, a unit for Banned Books Week, or simply looking for a novel that will generate meaningful classroom discussion, this book offers plenty of opportunities to connect literature to real-world issues.

Ban This Book by Alan Gratz

You can find this novel here

We earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.

📚 What Is Ban This Book About?

In Ban This Book, fourth-grader Amy Anne Ollinger discovers that her favorite book has been removed from her school library. Upset by the decision, Amy Anne takes matters into her own hands and creates a secret library filled with books that have been banned or challenged.

What begins as a personal response quickly grows into a much larger situation.

Through Amy Anne’s experiences, students encounter questions about who decides what books are available to children, why books may be challenged, how people can disagree about controversial topics, and what it means to speak up when you believe something is unfair.

These questions make Ban This Book much more than an entertaining story. It provides a natural starting point for teaching reading comprehension, character development, theme, author’s purpose, argument, evidence, and persuasive writing.

💡 Why Teach Ban This Book?

1. Encourage Critical Thinking

Ban This Book gives students plenty to think about.

Students can examine different perspectives and consider questions such as:

• Why might someone want a book removed from a library?
• Who should make decisions about what students can read?
• Can two people have different opinions about the same book?
• What makes an argument convincing?
• How should we respond when we disagree with someone?
• What evidence supports a particular point of view?

Rather than simply asking students whether they agree or disagree, teachers can use the novel to help students examine evidence, consider multiple perspectives, and explain their reasoning.

2. Explore the Theme of Censorship

The central conflict makes Ban This Book an accessible introduction to the concept of censorship and book challenges.

Students may already have heard adults talk about banned books, but the novel allows them to explore the topic through a character and story they can understand.

This creates opportunities to introduce vocabulary such as:

censorship • banned book • challenged book • freedom of expression • perspective • evidence • argument

These concepts can then be connected to informational texts and classroom discussions.

3. Practice Evidence-Based Discussion

Because the characters have different opinions about what happens in the story, Ban This Book works particularly well for classroom discussions and structured debates.

Ask students to support their ideas with evidence from the novel rather than simply saying, “I think…”

For example:

What evidence from the story supports Amy Anne’s actions?

How do the different characters view the situation?

Which character’s argument do you find most convincing, and why?

These questions encourage students to move beyond basic comprehension and practice explaining, supporting, and defending their ideas.

4. Connect Reading to Writing

Ban This Book also provides natural opportunities for writing.

Students can write:

• Opinion pieces
• Argumentative responses
• Character analyses
• Theme responses
• Text-to-world connections
• Evidence-based responses
• Persuasive writing

The novel gives students something meaningful to write about, while teachers can reinforce important ELA skills such as making a claim, using evidence, explaining reasoning, and organizing an argument.

5. Connect Literature to the Real World

One of the strengths of Ban This Book is the opportunity to connect fiction with nonfiction.

After reading the novel, students can investigate the history of book challenges, examine arguments surrounding challenged books, and compare fictional events with real-world situations.

This provides an excellent opportunity to combine literary analysis and informational-text reading.

Students can ask:

How does the fictional situation in Ban This Book compare with situations that have occurred in real schools and libraries?

That question can lead to research, discussion, writing, and media-literacy activities.

📖 Ban This Book and Banned Books Week

If you’re looking for a novel to use during Banned Books Week, Ban This Book is a natural fit.

The novel itself focuses on challenged and banned books, making it an engaging way to introduce students to the larger topic.

You can extend the unit with activities such as:

• Researching the history of challenged books
• Investigating why particular books have been challenged
• Comparing different perspectives
• Reading informational texts
• Conducting structured debates
• Writing evidence-based responses
• Discussing the role of libraries
• Exploring the difference between a book being challenged and being banned

These activities can turn a novel study into a broader ELA and critical-thinking unit.

🎯 ELA Skills You Can Teach with Ban This Book

This novel provides opportunities to practice a wide range of reading and writing skills, including:

Reading Comprehension
Students analyze characters, events, conflicts, themes, and important details.

Vocabulary
Students encounter new words in context and apply them in speaking and writing.

Character Analysis
Students examine Amy Anne and the other characters and analyze how their experiences influence their decisions.

Theme
Students identify important themes and support their interpretations with evidence.

Point of View
Students consider how different characters view the conflict.

Argument & Evidence
Students develop claims and support their thinking with evidence.

Writing
Students respond to the novel through opinion, analytical, and argumentative writing.

Speaking & Listening
Students participate in discussions and debates while practicing respectful communication.

📝 Make Teaching Ban This Book Easier with a Complete Novel Study

If you don’t want to spend hours creating comprehension questions, vocabulary activities, assessments, writing prompts, and extension activities, a ready-to-use Ban This Book novel study can save you valuable planning time.

My Ban This Book Novel Study for Grades 4–6 includes both printable and digital resources and is designed to provide a complete unit you can use with your students.

The unit includes:

• Daily lesson plans
• A pacing and standards guide
• Chapter-by-chapter comprehension questions
• Vocabulary activities
• Grammar activities
• Nonfiction reading passages
• Book-banning debate activities
• Critical-thinking writing
• Assessments
• Answer keys
• Interactive notebook activities
• End-of-book activities
• Printable PDF resources
• Google Drive™ digital resources
• Google Forms assessments

The combination of literature, informational text, vocabulary, writing, discussion, and critical thinking makes this more than a basic set of comprehension questions.

📚 Try a Free Sample

Want to see what is included before purchasing?

Download the free preview of the Ban This Book novel study to see sample pages and activities.

🛒 Get the Complete Ban This Book Novel Study

Ready to turn Ban This Book into a complete ELA unit?

Get the Ban This Book Novel Study for Grades 4–6 and save yourself hours of preparation.

Whether you’re teaching Ban This Book as a whole-class novel, using it in literature circles, assigning it for independent reading, or building a Banned Books Week unit, this novel offers countless opportunities for students to strengthen their reading, writing, discussion, and critical-thinking skills.

What better way to teach students to think deeply about what they read than with a book that gives them so much to think about?

💬 Connect with Fellow Educators!

Are you teaching Ban This Book this school year? How do you celebrate kindness in your classroom?

Join our free community, Book Talk with The Teaching Bank, to share ideas, grab freebies, and connect with 3rd–8th grade teachers using novels in the classroom!

*The Teaching Bank participates in the Amazon Associate Program and earns a fee from qualifying purchases made on the Amazon.com site.