Fantasy/Science Fiction

The Hunger Games is a fantasy book written by Suzanne Collins.

• Suggested Grade Level: 6th-8th Grade. The violent nature of this book would not be appropriate for any grades younger than 6th, specifically later 6th grade. The idea of a dystopia may be hard for a elementary school to grasp as well.
• Summary:This suspensful book is set in a place that used to be North America but now consists of 12 districts. They are strictly run by the Capitol and reminds them of that by having each district send a boy and a girl "tribute" to fight to the death in a arena for all to watch. This happens once a year and is done on a lottery system. The main character Katniss becomes someone you are pulling for and love as she becomes a contendor to win the "Games."
• Clasroom Skills and Strategies:
• The class could do an open minded portrait of one of the main characters from the book to visualize and reflect on him or her. They would draw a portrait focusing on the head of a character and instead of facial features they would write word or draw pictures representing the character's thinking.
• This would be a great book for students to engage in Grand Conversations. The book is so action packed that the students could really get involved talking about characters, plot, themes, etc. The teacher can also focus the group in on certain aspects.
• ESOL Strategies/Applications:
• Create a timeline that includes all of the major events in the story and create illustrations to go with them.
• Students will create dioramas which would be a 3D scene from the text to display a particular scene or part of the book.
• Read Aloud: Pages 19-25 because it is the part of the story where Katniss' little sister's name is called to be in the "Hunger Games." It introduces a few of the characters and is one of the most important parts of the story. This would leave the class on the edge of their seat wanting to know what happes more!
• Personal Opinion: I could not put this book down. It is one of my favorite books of all time. If I had the opportunity to read this in middle school I would have really become interested in reading and viewed it as something fun to do not something I had to do for school. Middle school is a time when a lot of kids turn away from reading but this book would get them interested and excited about it!