Don't You Know There's A War Going On? by AVI

Howie Crispers, an eleven year old boy living in Brooklyn during World War II, seems to think his principal is a Nazi spy. Dr. Lomister, or as Howie refers to him as the "drill sergeant with rules," plans to fire Howie's favorite teacher, Miss Gossim. Once Howie learns of this he is determined to save Miss Gossim.

Suggested Delivery: Independent Read

Reading Level: Lexile: 500L; Level S 

Vocabulary: fidget, convoy, spy, ally, U-Boat, monitor, pact, nazi.   

Vocabulary Activity: Introduce the vocabulary to students, explain that many of the words in the text relate to war and WWII. Ask students to note vocabulary words that are unfamiliar or new to them as they read in their reader's notebooks. After each chapter read go over new vocabulary, providing students (as well as asking students to provide) the definitions of each. 

Teaching Strategies:

Pre-reading: Begin by introducing the text to the students and explaining the setting as well as the time (WWII - 1940s). Ask students to create a KWL chart about WWII and the time period. Complete this chart as the story progresses. 

During Reading: As students read the novel have them complete a timeline of events in U.S. history that are occurring as the novel progresses. The students will incorporate both events from the story and U.S. history on the timeline to compare. Once students have done this they will work with a partner to discuss and create questions based on the book and what was going on at the time. (ex: How does Howie feel about the war? What does he say that implies this? (Use quotes from the text) How is Howie's family affected by the war? etc.

After Reading: Have students take on the character of Howie after the novel has ended. Where is Howie now? What is going on after the war? Students will write a journal entry from the viewpoint of Howie. Students may also pick another character to write from the viewpoint of and may create a Voki of that character. 

Web Resources: 

http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/book/dont-you-know-theres-war

Student Wiki and Voki created about the book: http://historicalfictionbookreviews3.wikispaces.com/Don't+You+Know+There's+a+War+on-+Austin+C.

http://www.bringinghistoryhome.org/assets/bringinghistoryhome/5th-grade/unit-2/5_WWII_LessonPlans.pdf

http://files.harpercollins.com/PDF/TeachingGuides/0380804905.pdf

Incorporating Reader's Theatre into the Classroom http://www.teachingbooks.net/author_collection.cgi?id=4&a=1

http://fffbookclubs.pbworks.com/w/page/4522641/Guiding%20Questions%20-%20Don't%20You%20Know%20There's%20a%20War%20On

AVI. (2001). Don't You Know There's A War Going On?  New York: HarperCollins.

Fig Pudding by Ralph Fletcher

Published by: Random House Children's Books, 1996


Clifford, a 5th grade boy, tells the several stories of the mishaps, laughs, and struggles of his family of six children. Through his viewpoint, we learn about each of his siblings and their stories; a brother hospitalized on Christmas, another brother who spends most of his time under the kitchen table etc. These stories draw us closer to the family and Clifford's life as the eldest. Despite the struggles, the family learns how important it is to value each other through their grief and healing.

Suggested Delivery: Independent Read

Reading Level: Lexile: 620L

Grade Level: 3-5 

Vocabulary: Retort, maniac, pulverize, gullible, skeptical, unison, consolation, boycott, frenzy, innocent, peculiar, sever, bemused, idiom. 

Vocabulary Activity: As students come across unfamiliar vocabulary in the text have them jot these words down in their reading notebooks. Students will use a dictionary to find the definition of the term. Teachers may access this website to review vocabulary terms with the class: http://quizlet.com/6958956/fig-pudding-vocabulary-flash-cards/ 

Teaching Strategies:

Pre-reading: 

Discuss with students the several issues that families deal with. Have students pair up to discuss their placement (oldest, youngest, etc) in their family and the advantages/disadvantages of this. Introduce the story telling students that the main character is the oldest of six children. 

During Reading: 

Have students complete a venn diagram comparing Cliff, the main character to himself/herself. Discuss the characters and have students take notes about each character and their character traits as they come across Cliff's siblings in the story. Have students create a family tree of Cliff's family along with these notes. 

After Reading: 

As a group have a discussion with the students about the several issues faced by the family in the story. Create a list of the problems and discuss how the family dealt with these problems. Have students create their own epilogue to the story focusing on the family one year later. 

Web Resources: 

http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/book/fig-pudding

Teacher planning sheet: 

http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:n_LH7VQ2gQIJ:www.aacps.org/aacps/boe/INSTR/CURR/comed/OIT_reading/Fig_Pudding/Weekly_Planning_Sheet.doc+Fig+pudding+ralph+fletcher+vocabulary&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us&client=safari

The Author: 

Fletcher, R. (1996). Fig Pudding. New York: Random House Children's Books