Victims and Villians

I hope everyone is having a relaxing winter break! I know I am! We go with my in-laws to Hawaii every Christmas. It is WONDERFUL! My son may be relaxing a little too much!

When I get back from break we have to complete our winter testing. The curriculum we use is called, Mondo, and it has 3-4 tests per student that have to be completed in fall, winter and spring. The information is great, but it is quite time consuming to gather all of that data. I have been looking for activities that my students can work on somewhat independently while still doing something valuable. 

I came up with a deep look at the Big Bad Wolf. Students will explore two sides to the infamous character

with the traditional story and this one by John Scieszka.

Students will take a look at the wolf in its natural habitat and ponder why american culture tends to cast the wolf as the antagonist. They will compare the stories and decide which version of the wolf they believe with a persuasive writing "craftivity."  If this goes well I'd like to do a whole series of Villian or Victim featuring different characters.

It offers practice on:

Story Comparisons - CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.4.9 Compare and contrast the treatment of similar themes and topics (e.g., opposition of good and evil) and patterns of events (e.g., the quest) in stories, myths, and traditional literature from different cultures.

Character Analysis - CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.4.3 Describe in depth a character, setting, or event in a story or drama, drawing on specific details in the text (e.g., a character’s thoughts, words, or actions).

Persuasive Writing - CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.4.1 Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons and information

Check it out in my TPT store. It would also be a great activity to leave for a sub! 

Now I am going to get back to vacation!