Reading Activities (compiled by Asenath Rallison) |During Reading|After Reading| Before Connections Ashlim, D.L. The Grimm Brothers' Children's and Household Tales (Grimms' Fairy Tales). 1999. University of Pittsburg . 28 Jan. 2008. http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/grimmtales.html This is a website that lists the collected work of the Grimm Brothers' collected stories, most available with just the click of the mouse. These stories could be read aloud to the class to expose students to fairy tales they've never heard before and to familiarize them with the process of how the Grimm Brothers' collected their work.   Domestic Violence . 10 Oct 2007. Medline Plus. 28 Jan 2008. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/domesticviolence.html This site has facts and statistics about domestic violence. It explains the different types of abuse, signs that it is occurring and has links that offer people places to go to get help. This information would be valuable if presenting facts to students about the seriousness of abuse.   NetSmart Workshop. Safety Pledges . 2001. National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and Boys & Girls Clubs of America . 28 Jan 2008. http://www.netsmartz.org/resources/pledge.htm Discuss with the students what measures they are using to protect themselves when they are online. Discuss proper internet safety, using the Safety Pledges found on this website as a guide. Make sure students understand the danger of chatrooms and of meeting people off the internet.   Rallison, Asenath. “Who I Am Collage.” January 2008. Have the students make a collage using magazine picture, pictures from the internet or ones that they draw to make a representation about how they see themselves. Make sure they do not include physical characteristics, focusing instead on their interests and desires.   Rallison, Asenath. “Questionnaire.” January 2008. Create a survey that asks students personal questions about themselves. The questions should focus on who they are as a person, and not what they look like (Desired profession, favorite vacation, pet peeves etc). In groups have students try and identify which student the survey is connected to. Talk about the importance of getting to know someone other than for how they look.   Rallison, Asenath. “The Good Beast.” January 2008. Split the students into small groups and have them list qualities that they admire in people. They can think of sport, political or other leaders that they know of. After they collectively create a list of admirable qualities have them compare to the other groups. If there are qualities that appear on multiple lists, discuss why it is that these things are important.   Rallison, Asenath. “Non-Stop Writing.” January 2008. Have the students write continually for five minutes (or more, depending on what best suits your needs) about proper conduct rules within relationships with friends, adults, teachers, etc. Suggest that they write about what kind of behavior is appropriate and what is not, where they would draw the line and handle difficult situations that come there way. Discuss.   Rallison, Asenath. “In Your Life” January 2008. Have students think of examples of peer pressure in their own lives and how they've dealt with those situations. They could act out some of the scenarios they've had to deal with, or just write about them. Within the context of peer pressure discuss the difference between true friends and not. Do true friends use peer pressure?   Rallison, Asenath. “Modernized Fairy Tales.” January 2007. Have the students think of a fairy tale they are familiar with and then rewrite it into a modern day setting. Discuss the themes that were kept the same and why they are still as relevant today as they were hundreds of years ago.   Teacher and Volunteer Corner .U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES. 28 January 2008. http://www.thecoolspot.gov/teachercorner.asp This site is designed for middle school students and provides role-playing scenarios and other facts and situations dealing with peer pressure.   During Connections   National Institute of Mental Health . 10 Oct 2007. Medline Plus. 4 February 2008. < http://www.nimh.nih.gov/ > Discuss the various characters that are in the chat room with Kyle. What deeper problems are they trying to hide, or trying to cope with? Discuss any mental health problems that the students think the characters have. Use the website as a reference to find out more information about the certain tendencies/ characteristics that they characters portray.   New York City Website . 4 February 2008. The City of New York . 4 February 2008 < www.nyc.gov > Obtain maps of the NYC subway system (one such map is provided at http://www.mta.info/nyct/maps/submap.htm ). Have the students visit the above website, or check out books from the library that focus on New York City . In groups, have the students plan what they would do if they had a day to spend in the city. Include specific details like which subway they would take, which stores they would visit, and why they chose the places that they did.   Rallison, Asenath. “Acting.” February 2008. Have the students pick their favorite scene in the book and act it out in front of the class. Encourage them to interpret things in an original way, and to leave the audience questioning what will happen next.   Rallison, Asenath. “Beauty.” February 2008. Have the students make a multimedia presentation of things they consider beautiful. Use minimal text, focusing on aesthetic qualities instead. Students may use pictures, movie clips, drawings, music, objects or anything else they can think of. Presentations should not go over three minutes in length.   Rallison, Asenath. “Cliff Hanger.” February 2008 Have the students read up to page 57, and then stop. Have them write their own version of what happens next, complete with dialogue and characterization. In groups (or partners) have them share their stories, reading a few out loud to the entire class. Discuss what makes a good cliff hanger, the significance of foreshadowing and the elements of plot.   Rallison, Asenath. “Kissing.” February 2008. Kyle's spell cannot be broken unless he is kissed by his true love. Have the students think of other popular stories where a kiss was necessary to right any wrongs that had been done. Also discuss stories where a kiss has done harm. Discuss this juxtaposition, while at the same time discussing the elements of Romanticism. Have the students write poems incorporating those key elements.   Rallison, Asenath. “Personal Add.” February 2008. Have the students make a personal add for Kyle. Encourage creativity—make sure to remind students that Kyle doesn't want people to know about his “condition.” Make sure that the students use specific examples from the book to give credit to what they put on Kyle's personal add.     Rallison, Asenath. “Phantom.” February 2008 Obtain a copy of the Phantom of the Opera soundtrack (legally.) Have the students listen to “Past the Point of No Return” or “Prima Donna.” Different directions could happen with either song—have the students find similarities between the Phantom and Kyle, or between Sloane and Caroletta. Even if the students are unfamiliar with the entire story of the Phantom of the Opera, they could still garner meaning from the songs. Also, Beastly could be used as a “bridge” for the slightly more heavy reading of The Phantom of the Opera .   Rallison, Asenath. “The Great Debate.” February 2008. Have the students take sides on what happened to Kyle: did he deserve to be put under a spell, or was Kendra right in casting a spell on him? Have them construct a speech to back up their opinion, using specific evidence from the book or from other popular media. Presents the speeches in class, and then vote on which side wins.   Rallison, Asenath. “Two Years.” February 2008. Kyle is placed under a spell for at least two years, if not the rest of his life. Have the students write a reflective essay about where they see themselves in two years (or five, if two is not a big enough contrast.) Encourage them to make goals and live so that they can obtain them.     After Connections   Rallison, Asenath. “Board Game.” February 2008. Have the students construct a board game representing the timeline of the novel. Encourage them to be creative, incorporating the obstacles in the novel into the board game as well. If they can think of another game to create with instructor approval, that's fine too.   Rallison, Asenath. “Diorama.” February 2008. Have the students select their favorite scene from the book. Have them construct a 3D diorama (in a shoe box, for example) of it, including a paragraph explaining what is occurring in the scene.   Rallison, Asenath. “Diagram.” February 2008. Have the students make a diagram of the pros and cons of being popular, or any issue they found especially compelling from the novel. Have them relate this back to Kyle, Sloane and Kendra and their actions.   Rallison, Asenath. “Essay.” February 2008. Many interesting issues are explored in this novel. Have the students choose the one that they find most interesting/important to them and have them write a research paper on it. Issues include: popularity, self esteem, relationship with parents and peers, online chatting/dating or witchcraft. Students should have a clear thesis, with at least two outside sources.   Rallison, Asenath. “Journal.” February 2008. This is a writing assignment where the students must write a predetermined set of “journal entries” (around ten) from the point of view of one of the characters in the novel, following the time line of the novel. Have them back up their entries with quotes/passages from the novel, supporting what they've written.   Rallison, Asenath. “Letters.” February 2008. This could be done as continuation to the “Two Year” during activity. Have the students write a letter to their future selves, including what their life is like now, what's important to them and what they hope their life is like in the future. If you're feeling really ambitious, you could obtain the student's addresses and mail the letters to them in two years. Perhaps email would be best…   Rallison, Asenath. “News Report.” February 2008. Have the students create their own “news report” of the events that occurred during the novel. They can choose to write a newspaper, conduct (and record) their own interviews or do their presentation in front of the class. They should be able to summarize the key events of the novel, and provide details from the novel.   Rallison, Asenath. “Parent Connections.” February 2008. Have the students read the part of Romeo and Juliet Act 3 scene 5 where Juliet and her parents argue. Using this as an example, or by having the students think of other literary works they've read where there has been an issue with between the protagonists and the parents (that are approved with the instructor), have the students write a compare and contrast essay.   Rallison, Asenath. “Soundtrack.” February 2008. Have the students map the emotional, mental, or physical timeline of the novel with appropriate songs. They should think of it as a soundtrack for the novel, with the songs building upon each other. Make sure that the students can defend their song choices with specific examples from the novel.   Rallison, Asenath. “Spoof.” February 2008. This could be done as a writing assignment or as a skit. In groups, have the students create their own modern day fairy tale using the characters from the novel. A spoof of the novel, if you will. Make sure that they include all the elements of plot: exposition, rising action, climax, denouement and conclusion.