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The Westing Game Book Club Focused on Genre Study

The Westing Game Book Club Focused on Genre Study

A modern classic and the winner of the Newberry Medal, The Westing Game is an excellent novel to introduce readers to the mystery genre. The story is clever enough that readers will have to pay careful attention and so engaging they will not want to put it down.

Readers will learn to set a purpose for reading and understand how the chapters in a mystery novel fit together. The Book Club lesson plans draw student attention to the overall structure of clues and the author’s use of suspense and foreshadowing. Students will also learn to develop a list of suspects and find evidence to support their solution to the mystery.

  • Included in this resource
  • Lesson plans for 6 book club meetings focused on Genre Study
  • Chapter by chapter discussion questions and key vocabulary
  • Book Club calendar
  • Conversation prompts
  • Student self-evaluations forms
  • Reading response board
  • Culminating activity
  • Instructional focus assessment, answer key, and rubric
  • Note: This set of instructional resources is for use with the book The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin. A copy of the book is not included in this set of resources.
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A modern classic and the winner of the Newberry Medal, The Westing Game is an excellent novel to introduce readers to the mystery genre. The story is clever enough that readers will have to pay careful attention and so engaging they will not want to put it down.

Readers will learn to set a purpose for reading and understand how the chapters in a mystery novel fit together. The Book Club lesson plans draw student attention to the overall structure of clues and the author’s use of suspense and foreshadowing. Students will also learn to develop a list of suspects and find evidence to support their solution to the mystery.

  • Included in this resource
  • Lesson plans for 6 book club meetings focused on Genre Study
  • Chapter by chapter discussion questions and key vocabulary
  • Book Club calendar
  • Conversation prompts
  • Student self-evaluations forms
  • Reading response board
  • Culminating activity
  • Instructional focus assessment, answer key, and rubric
  • This set of instructional resources is for use with the book The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin. A copy of the book is not included in this set of resources.
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Book Club resources

The management resources include a Book Club Calendar, conversation prompts, Student Self-Evaluation forms, Reading Response Board (with optional Common Core alignment), and an Expectations for Book Club anchor chart.

The instructional overview includes instructional background for mysteries, instructional objectives for each of the Book Club meetings, and a list of the materials and preparation necessary to the The Westing Game Book Club.

Escape into the mystery genre with The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin. This Book Club focuses on understanding the text structure of mysteries so that students can find clues, examine suspects, and successfully solve the puzzle.

In order to solve the mystery in The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin, readers will have to identify and track the clues the author presents. The use of a graphic organizer will help students stay focused on clues as they read.

One of the key features of a mystery like Ellen Raskin's The Westing Game is suspense for the reader. This meeting focuses on examining how the author creates suspense through applying pressure, creating complications, and being unpredictable.

Foreshadowing is another technique often used in the mystery genre. Author Ellen Raskin uses foreshadowing in The Westing Game to hint at things that will become important to the story later on. Paying close attention to these clues will help readers be able to solve the puzzle.

When trying to solve the puzzle in The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin, it is important to notice who the possible suspects are. Keeping a list of the characters that have the means and opportunity to commit the crime will help readers stay focused.

This final The Westing Game Book Club meeting shows students how to use the important details of the story to solve the puzzle. Can you correctly guess, "who done it?"

Use this six-question assessment to determine whether or not students understand the key concepts associated with mystery genre.
More about this resource
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Read the Book
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Teacher Guides
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Standard Alignment
Book Title:
The Westing Game
Book Author:
Ellen Raskin
Grade Level:
5
Genre(s):
Mystery
F&P Guided Reading Level:
V
DRA Level:
50
Reading Recovery Level:
Theme(s):
Award Winners
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CCSS
TEKS
Common Core Alignment: RL.5.1, RL.5.2, RL.5.3, RL.5.4, RL.5.5, RL.5.6, RL.5.7, RL.5.9, RL.5.10, RF.5.3, RF.5.4, SL.5.1a, SL.5.1b, SL.5.1c, W.5.8, W.5.9, L.5.4a, L.5.5, L.5.6
Vocabulary Connections: L.5.4a, L.5.5, L.5.6
TEKS Alignment: 5.1C, 5.1A, 5.1D, 5.6A, 5.6B, 5.6C, 5.6D, 5.6E, 5.6F, 5.6G, 5.6H, 5.6I, 5.7A, 5.7B, 5.7C, 5.7D, 5.7E, 5.7F, 5.7G, 5.8A, 5.8B, 5.8C, 5.8D, 5.9A, 5.9B, 5.9D(i), 5.9D(ii), 5.9D(iii), 5.9E(i), 5.9E(ii), 5.9E(iii), 5.9F, 5.10A, 5.10B, 5.10C, 5.10D, 5.10E, 5.10F, 5.10G, 5.13A, 5.13C, 5.13E, 5.13H
Vocabulary Connections: 5.7E, 5.7F, 5.3A, 5.3B
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