Al Capone Does My Shirts
By: Gennifer Choldenko
Resources:
Gennifer Choldenko’s Web Site
http://www.choldenko.com
This website includes a Scholastic Literature Circle Guide with curriculum-related activities and comprehension questions.
This website has a lot of good discussion questions and accompanying text citations that probe topics such as Moose's feelings, Natalie's behavior, relating to Moose's situation, and character growth.
http://content.scholastic.com/browse/collateral.jsp?id=10810_type=Book_typeId=4286
This PDF has tons of lesson ideas for pre-reading, during reading, and post-reading, with accompanying assessments and worksheets.
http://www.longman.co.uk/secondary/english/nll_Tsupport/pdfs/AlCaponeDoesMyShirts.pdf
Scholastic Literature Circle Guide
http://teacher.scholastic.com/clubs/pdfs/alcaponedoes_t.pdf
http://teacher.scholastic.com/clubs/pdfs/alcaponedoesmyshirts_g.pdf
These websites provide author background and activities/questions for discussion.
Additional Lesson Ideas:
Natalie has what would now be diagnosed as autism, so an investigation into what autism is and how it affects both autistic individuals and their families would be a good lesson idea. Students can apply their knowledge of autism to Natalie and see which characteristics she exhibits and decide whether or not she fits the diagnosis.
Students can do research on Alcatraz and/or Al Capone. They can then create some form of report (taking into consideration different kinds of texts and their purposes)
Sunday, December 2, 2007
Summary
Twelve year old Moose Flanagan is faced with a life-altering change, when his father gets a new job, and his family has to relocate. However, Moose’s family does not move to just any new neighborhood but to the island of Alcatraz, home of a top security prison which houses some of the world’s most notorious criminals, including Al Capone. As a prison guard/electrician, Moose’s father is required to live on the island with his family, just like the rest of the employees of the famous prison. Moose is now faced with even more worries than the average boy his age. Would he be able to fit in? Who would he play baseball with? Would his father have time for him? On top of all of these concerns, Moose’s mother places him in charge of watching his sister, Natalie, who suffers from autism. Afraid of how the children on the island will react to Natalie, the transition becomes even more difficult for Moose. Nevertheless, Moose becomes friends with some of the children but is careful to keep his eye out for the warden’s conniving daughter, Piper, who tries to involve him in several sneaky schemes. Follow Moose as he takes us on a journey of numerous plot twists, juggling the many responsibilities that people his age rarely have to handle, while trying to enjoy himself and just be a regular kid.
Pre-Reading Activity
Moving to a New Area – Prewriting activity
This activity will be performed on an individual basis and then as a group sharing activity, utilizing a Venn diagram. Each student will write how he or she thinks it would feel to move to a new place, away from their friends. The students will then write how they think it would feel to be sent to prison and compare how this might be similar to moving to a new town and going to a new school. Next, the students will share their writing with a partner. Afterward, the class will regroup and, with the teacher’s assistance, create a Venn diagram on the board to show the similarities and differences between moving to a new place and being sent to prison.
Objective: By the end of the lesson, students will be able to show in writing and through the use of a Venn diagram how they can recognize and show similarities and differences and make predictions about themes in reference to moving to a new place and being sent to prison.
Procedure:
1. Before reading any of Al Capone Does My Shirts, ask the students to take out a sheet of paper, and have them write how they think they would feel if they had to leave their home, their school, and their friends and move to a new place.
2. After about five minutes of writing, ask the students to flip their sheets over and write how they think it would feel to be sent to prison.
3. After about another five minutes of writing, ask the students to turn to a partner and share what they wrote. Ensure that each student has a partner. If there is an odd number, create a group of three.
4. While the students are conversing, the teacher should draw a large Venn diagram on the board with “Moving to a New Place” on one side and “Being Sent to Prison” on the other.
5. After asking the students to regroup, call on individuals to share their ideas about what they think it is like to move to a new place or be sent to prison and how these two things could be similar.
6. When the students’ ideas seemed to be exhausted, ask the students how they think these ideas might relate to Al Capone Does My Shirts. Inquire about potential themes of the story.
Additional Resources:
Students can use the Internet to research the characteristics and properties of prisons in general.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prison
This activity will be performed on an individual basis and then as a group sharing activity, utilizing a Venn diagram. Each student will write how he or she thinks it would feel to move to a new place, away from their friends. The students will then write how they think it would feel to be sent to prison and compare how this might be similar to moving to a new town and going to a new school. Next, the students will share their writing with a partner. Afterward, the class will regroup and, with the teacher’s assistance, create a Venn diagram on the board to show the similarities and differences between moving to a new place and being sent to prison.
Objective: By the end of the lesson, students will be able to show in writing and through the use of a Venn diagram how they can recognize and show similarities and differences and make predictions about themes in reference to moving to a new place and being sent to prison.
Procedure:
1. Before reading any of Al Capone Does My Shirts, ask the students to take out a sheet of paper, and have them write how they think they would feel if they had to leave their home, their school, and their friends and move to a new place.
2. After about five minutes of writing, ask the students to flip their sheets over and write how they think it would feel to be sent to prison.
3. After about another five minutes of writing, ask the students to turn to a partner and share what they wrote. Ensure that each student has a partner. If there is an odd number, create a group of three.
4. While the students are conversing, the teacher should draw a large Venn diagram on the board with “Moving to a New Place” on one side and “Being Sent to Prison” on the other.
5. After asking the students to regroup, call on individuals to share their ideas about what they think it is like to move to a new place or be sent to prison and how these two things could be similar.
6. When the students’ ideas seemed to be exhausted, ask the students how they think these ideas might relate to Al Capone Does My Shirts. Inquire about potential themes of the story.
Additional Resources:
Students can use the Internet to research the characteristics and properties of prisons in general.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prison
Four Square Activity
Four Square Character Analysis
This activity could be accomplished in partners or small groups, depending on the class size. Each group will receive a four square chart, as shown below, and the teacher can decide which character each group studies. The character’s name is written in the center diamond and different traits of the character can be filled in each of the corners. In the example below, Moose is the target character. From left to right, clockwise, the characteristics being investigated are: personality traits, physical traits, summary traits, and other characters’ reactions to Moose. These specific categories can be adjusted to fit the teacher’s objectives.
Objective: By the end of this lesson, students should be able to identify and write using the four square chart different kinds of character traits using a character from Al Capone Does My Shirts.
Procedure:
1. While the class is still reading Al Capone Does My Shirts, the teacher will introduce an activity called the four square character analysis. As part of a class discussion, the teacher will either teach and/or review different types of character traits, such as physical, personality, and any other traits the teacher would like to incorporate. Examples from other stories (that the whole class has read) could be used in a prototype four square on the blackboard or dry erase board. In this way, all the students could contribute to creating a model four square analysis.
2. After establishing groups and answering questions, the teacher can give each group their own copy of a blank four square analysis chart. Depending on the teacher’s objective, each group can have the same or different characters. While groups are working, the teacher should encourage the students to use the novel to help them in their chart. If any groups are struggling or confused, the teacher will be available to assist the group in guided practice. The teacher can utilize scaffolding techniques by giving students initial examples of a category to spark their thinking and referring back to the examples the class developed.
3. After each group has completed the chart, the teacher may decide either to have a whole class discussion and comparison or smaller group discussions. Either way, each group should share their chart with others and collaborate to make a larger chart. The teacher can initiate a discussion asking each group to give reasons why they chose particular traits for their character.
Business Poster
Business Poster Lesson Plan
Objective:
Students will use the text and their own creativity to design and create a poster for Piper's laundry service.
After reading past ch. 12, the class will discuss Piper's and Moose's tactics for enticing kids to use their laundry service. Through whole-class discussion, determine why kids are interested and what the major selling points are. Using ads found in magazines, newspapers, and on the internet, the class will then investigate what information is important to include in advertisements. In small groups, students will design and create a poster for the laundry service based on the text and what the class has discussed. The teacher will lead the discussion about the book, and guide the investigation of the advertisements. While students are creating the posters, the teacher will answer questions, provide encouragement and guidance, etc.
Objective:
Students will use the text and their own creativity to design and create a poster for Piper's laundry service.
After reading past ch. 12, the class will discuss Piper's and Moose's tactics for enticing kids to use their laundry service. Through whole-class discussion, determine why kids are interested and what the major selling points are. Using ads found in magazines, newspapers, and on the internet, the class will then investigate what information is important to include in advertisements. In small groups, students will design and create a poster for the laundry service based on the text and what the class has discussed. The teacher will lead the discussion about the book, and guide the investigation of the advertisements. While students are creating the posters, the teacher will answer questions, provide encouragement and guidance, etc.
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