Three African-American female mathematicians work in NASA’s early space program as human computers. Their exceptional mathematical abilities are harnessed to help bring the American space program to success at a time when blacks and women were not generally welcome in technology-related work-places. It touches on the racial tension in the US at that time but focuses on the extraordinary contribution of these four women.

Author: Margot Lee Shetterly
Genre: Historical non-fiction
Keywords: Biography, empowered women, black women, racial tension, space race, science, STEM, mathematics
Appropriateness for the junior learner: This book was modified from the original to make it appropropriate for young readers. The topic is engaging and makes roll-models of some exceptional black women in a STEM-related field.

Classroom Suggestions

What could be taught using this text in terms of content, themes, and/or literacy?

• Content: Gaining an understanding of the structural and social, race and sexual discrimination in North American Society.  
• Themes: the effect of racism and sexism on American society, perseverance in the face of adversity, the effect of race on people’s behaviour
• Literacy: Character Analysis, Theme analysis

How could students respond to this text?

Activity 1

As a class, create a list of as many themes as students found in the book. Have each student select one theme and write a short essay that describes how that theme is revealed throughout the book with examples that support their position.

• Link to Curriculum Grade 6 Reading 1.4. Writing 1.2, 1.3, 1.5, 1.6.

Activity 2

Given the availability of an excellent movie based on this story, consider watching the movie after the book as been read and also use activities tied to the movie. Have the students watch the movie after reading the book. Think. Pair. Share. Consider the following questions: Why was this movie made? What message are the producers sending. Who was the messages intended for? How might different types of people react or respond to this movie and why? Whose point of view is presented in the movie? When the women are stopped by the police on their way to work, how does the film play with our understanding of stereotypes: How is the police officer dressed? How does he speak? What does he say? How are we expecting him to react?

• Link to Grade 6 Media Literacy 1.1, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 2.2. Oral Communication 2.2.

Activity 3

It's hard not to go cross curricular into Mathematics for this book although the math for space flight might be a little beyond Grade 6. The good news is that NASA has produced a collection of space related math questions for your students to investigate. Because there's no way of knowing where you are in the math curriculum, I would recommend looking for a problem in  https://www.nasa.gov/pdf/377727main_Lunar_Math.pdf that matches up with something you've already covered in math. Try page 38 and 39 in the NASA Lunar Math guide for questions related to Data Management or page 32 or 33 for Measurement questions or page 26 for a Probability question.

• Link to Grade 6 Math Curriculm (Measurement. Data Mangement and Probability).

An athletic youth is sidelined by injury and forced to focus his free time on reading - his father’s passion, but not his. A turbulent family situation combined with the challenges of bullying, friendship and a first crush all wrapped up in a combination of free verse, haiku and other poetry styles makes this an unusual and engaging read.

Author: Kwame Alexander
Genre: Sports, Poetry, Fiction
Keywords: soccer, sports, poetry, family dynamics, divorce,
Appropriateness for Junior Grades: The text is very accessible for junior readers and the main character’s affinity for soccer will appeal to an audience who are more interested in sports than academics. Some of the subjects addressed in the novel are sensitive and occasionally some of the language is challenging so it’s important that as a teacher you’ve read through the text completely so that you’re prepared to manage the discussion around those areas. Marital breakdown and divorce feature in this book and is likely to resonate with children who have personal experience with it.

Sample Text: https://www.amazon.com/Booked-Kwame-Alexander/dp/0544570987/#reader_0544570987

Classroom Suggestions

What could be taught using this text in terms of content, themes, and/or literacy?

• Content: The story covers a broad range of topics for investigation including divorce, friendship, love, sports and the different relationships people have with words.
• Themes: Young people finding their own way in the world
• Literacy: Different forms of poetry

How could students respond to this text?

Activity 1 - Found Poetry

Use the technique Mr. Mac used in Booked to create a new poem from an existing work to create your own poem. Select a page or poem from Booked and select words to create a new message (poem in free-verse) using those words. See if you can do it keeping the words in the order they appear on the page, or re-arrange them if necessary. Students may select a different book as their source material. When students have completed their poems, have them read them aloud and discuss how the new poem is different from the original source. (Language Grade 6 Reading 1.1. Oral 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4)

Activity 2 - Write a Poem and Perform It

• Explore Words and their Sounds. Working independently, have students choose a poem in the book that they think focuses on the sounds made by words through the literary devices of alliteration, repetition and rhyming. Class discussion of the impact these tools have on the writing and readers reaction to the writing. Students create their own poems of any form including free verse using these literary devices. Review samples of rap and slam poetry to broaden their perspective on different styles. This exercise may be extended to include a performance of their work accompanied by appropriate music or constructed as a rap with appropriate backing track or as a slam poem with accompanying soundtrack. Students may wish to produce their work as an audio or video track rather than performing live. Class discusses each work and talks about who the intended audience for the work is. Discuss why the poem will reach and resonate with the intended audience. Discuss how other audiences might perceive the message (Language curriculum Oral Communication 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5. Arts Curriculum Music C1.2, C1.3)

Activity 3 - Fun with Malapropisms

• The book includes a number of malapropisms. Working alone, have students make a list of the malapropisms they can find throughout the book. After they’ve compiled their list, have then work in pairs to discuss what word should have been used and what impact the malapropism had on what the reader was saying. Have each of the pairs talk about one of the malapropisms that they liked the best, what the correct word should be and why they think the author chose to use that word in that situation. (Language Grade 6 Oral Communication 2.2. Reading 2.4).

Rohit and Dylan are two young North American boys (one East Indian and one white) who travel to India with Rohit’s family for a vacation. Dylan’s inexperience with Indian culture puts some strain on their friendship as Rohit attempts to help him adjust to the unusual surroundings and culture. The cultural adventure opens Dylan’s eyes to the differences around him and brings home the importance of friendship when navigating the world.

Author: Mahtab Narsimhan
Genre: Young adventure
Keywords: Mumbai, India, cultural exploration, culture shock, children’s books, humour, friendship
Appropriateness for junior grades: This book is written for junior readers. The content is age appropriate but addresses many topics including; friendship, cultural difference, complex family dynamics, divorce, body image, parental expectations and delicious food. The writing is accessible for a grade 5 to 6 level.

Classroom Suggestions

What could be taught using this text in terms of content, themes, and/or literacy?

• Content: Cultural differences between India and North America. The importance of friendship and strong family relationships.
• Themes: Why different people can be good friends, The grass is always greener, culture clash

How could students respond to this text?

Activity 1 - Graffiti

Break students into random groups of three or four. Distribute large sheets of paper to each group. Each paper has a discussion question selected by the teacher from the author’s Discussion Question and Activities https://www.mahtabnarsimhan.com/wp-content/themes/wpnovelist/docs/Mission_Mumbai_Discussion_questions_&_Activities.pdf . Students take time to think about the question and then record their responses on the paper. After a set period of time, the groups move on to a different question and repeat the process without reading the responses from the previous group. When all groups have responded to all questions, they return to their original question to review all the answers. If possible have each group summarize the answers to their question and present to the class.

• Link to Language Curriculum Grade 6 Oral 1.2. Reading 1.4, 1.6.

Activity 2 - Writing About You and Your Favourite Character

Rohit and Dylan see themselves as modern-day Frodo and Sam from Lord of the Rings. Have students think of who their favourite character is from a book, movie, video game, TV Show, etc. and write a few paragraphs about how they are like the character and how they are different. Have them consider whether they would really like to be that character. What are the advantages and disadvantages of being that character? Be aware of word choice and select words and use figurative language, innovative expressions and vivid words. Student should be prepared to discuss their choice of words.

• Link to Language Curriculum Reading 1.9. Writing 1.2, 2.3, 2.4

Alternative texts to consider:

• Good-bye Buffalo Bay - Another book by Larry Loyie, this book offers a more in-depth exploration of the residential school experience by one student in his final year and his experiences upon leaving the school and attempting to re-integrate into his First Nations society. The writing level of the book fairly low so it is accessible to younger readers, but because this book talks specifically about the school experience, it’s a more difficult read for students and probably more suitable for older students. There is some violence directed toward children in the book which some may find distrubing; however, the violence is not sensationalized or dwelt upon for long so consider whether your readers would be able to handle it. Compared to what is on TV and videos in prime time, this book is quite tame.
• The Cross-Over - Another book by Kwame Alexander that weaves the love of basketball through the lives of twin brothers as they struggle with dramatic changes in their lives and loss. Written in Alexander's signature poetic style. This is really a fun book and will definitely appeal to kids who are into sports and maybe not so much into reading. It's a quick read (a couple of hours) and because of it's free verse style of writing, it's not too dense. The really uses the style to great advantage in moving the story quickly and emphasizing the drama and activity in the story. If you're never read a free verse novel before, this is a good entry point. The story is classroom safe. Even reading this book as an adult, I really enjoyed the story. I listened to it as a talking book and the performance of the book is very well done.