Author: Kate DiCamillo
Illustrator: Timothy Basil Ering
Copyright: 2003
Publisher: Candlewick Press, Cambridge, MA
Age Level: 7-12 and up
Reading Levels:
o Fountas & Pinnell – U Fiction
o Lexile – 670
o Accelerated Reader – 4.7
Pages: 270 plus After Words
Genre: Fiction/Fairytale, Fantasy, Adventure
“The world is dark, and light is precious. Come closer, dear reader.
You must trust me. I am telling you a story.” – Kate DiCamillo
Suggested delivery: Read aloud, read independently, literature circles
Links:
· Literature Circle Questions and Activities http://teacher.scholastic.com/clubs/pdfs/taleofdespereaux_t.pdf
· To purchase the book
· About the author/book – Post Reading Author Study
· Teacher’s Guide available at (Pre/During/Post Activities)
· Book and Author Literature Study (Pre/During/Post Activities)
· Made into a Major Motion Picture from Universal Pictures December 2008/Post Reading-Games, video trailer…
3 teaching suggestions - using the book with students in grades 4-6
1. Character Study
2. Comparison of real and fictional mice/ Comparison of Castle life upstairs and downstairs
3. Author study or comparison to another book by author or to a similar book
Key Vocabulary:
1. litter
2. scurrying
3. dungeon
4. renounce
5. solace
6. illumination
7. clout
8. aspirations
9. olfactory
10. lair
Before Reading Strategy: Read-Aloud, Read-Pair-Share, Anticipation Guide
During Reading Strategy: Directed Reading – Thinking Activity, Mosaic of Thought Comprehension Questions
After Reading Strategy: Opinionnaire, Book Report/Presentation/Reader's Theatre
A writing activity that requires the students to respond to the text to demonstrate inferential comprehension - Have students write letters of advice or encouragement to any of the characters citing problems then offering solutions…
Awards, Reviews, Honors or Mentions: “Forgiveness, light, love, and soup. These essential ingredients combine into a tale that is as soul stirring as it is delicious.” – Booklist Starred Review
- 2004 Newbery Medal Winner
- A #1 National Bestseller
- A Junior Library Guild Selection
- Starred Review from the School Library Journal, Kirkus Reviews, and Publishers Weekly
- Maine Student Book Award Winner, 2004-2005
- Golden Archer Award Winner, Intermediate 2005 (Wisconsin)
- Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children’s Book Award Winner, 2005 (Vermont)
- Kentucky Bluegrass Award Winner 3-5, 2005
- Rhode Island Children’s Book Award Winner, 2005
- Land of Enchantment Winner, Young Adult 2005-2006 (New Mexico)
- Charlie May Simon Children’s Books Award Winner, 2005-2006 (Arkansas)
- Volunteer State Book Award Winner 4-6, 2005-2006 (Tennessee)
- Garden State Children’s Book Award Winner, children’s fiction 2006 (New Jersey)
- Sequoyah Book Award Winner, 2006 (Oklahoma)
- The Pacific Northwest Library Association’s Young Reader’s Choice Award, Winner Junior Division, 2006
- Massachusetts Children’s Book Award Winner, 2007
- Chapman Awards for Best Classroom Read-Alouds (k-6), 2003 Fiction
Other Books by the Author or that may follow:
Early Chapter Books
- Mercy Watson Series
- Bink & gollie
Novels
o Because of Winn- Dixie, 2000 ( Newbery Honor Book, 2001)
o The Tiger Rising, 2001 (National Book Award Finalist, 2001)
o The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, 2006
o The Magician’s Elephant, 2009
Topics from the book: Character education, fantasy, rich vocabulary, fairytales, mice
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