About This Book
Book Title: The One and Only Ivan
Author: Katherine Applegate
Copyright: 2012
Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books
10 East 53rd Street, New York, NY 10022.
Reading Level
Flesch-Kincaid Reading Ease: 90.9
Grade-Level>
Flesch-Kincaide: 2.7
Gunning-Fog: 5.1
Coleman-Liau: 6.5
SMOG: 3.9
Automated Readability: 0.6
Avg. Grade Level (Overall): 3.8
5 Key-Words/Phrases About Book
family, home, artistry, showmanship, & the human condition
Suggested Delivery
I would suggested using this book as a read-aloud, because the book deals with issues that would be great to devulge in class discussion.
Online Extensions
http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/
> This resource is a science-based website for children. It includes a section on gorillas that describes their habits, lifestyle, and more. The website would be useful to read BEFORE the reading, so that students would go into the reading knowing characteristics about gorillas like Ivan.
http://www.zooatlanta.org/ivan
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| Ivan at the Atlanta Zoo |
> This resource is from the Atlanta Zoo. The website gives us information on the real Ivan as well as a video of him interacting at the zoo. This source would be helpful either DURING or AFTER the reading. Students would remain interested in the story if they see this websource. However, it would extend the story so students could get some closure and a better understanding of The One and Only Ivan.
Teaching Strategies
1) Vocabulary Words - domain, silverback, vining, chest beat, slimy chimp, & grunt
2) Reading Strategies:
> Before - the Atlanta Zoo Website has a great video of Ivan. To peak student's interest, read the first page and show them the video.
> During - Give students a reading questionnaire that asks major questions during the reading ("What role does Julia play in this chapter?" for example). This allows the student to listen carefully during the read-aloud to understand the story and the important events happening in each chapter (or diary entry).
> After - Have the students discuss with a partner what they thought about the story, making sure to discuss their opinions about the story (what they found interesting). The groups could then tell the class what they talked about with their peers.
3) Writing Activity - Students could write their own version of a diary entry of one of the characters in the story (preferably Ivan, Bob, Stella, or Rose). The students would then sign it as the character (i.e. Sincerely, Ivan). The students would then exchange diary entries with a peer and read them. This allows students to internalize the story, while still sticking to the events in the story.
