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Wishtree Book Club Focused on Figurative Language

Wishtree Book Club Focused on Figurative Language

Red is a 216-year-old Northern red oak who is home to many animals. Additionally, he is the community’s wishtree which means he hears the secrets, hopes, and dreams of many, including the young girl next door. Samar is different from the others in the neighborhood, but wishes for nothing more than a friend. Red, with the help of his animal residents, sets out to make her wish come true! Author Katherine Applegate makes the non-human characters come to life with beautiful detail, making Wishtree an ideal text for a Book Club exploring figurative language.
  • Included in this resource
  • Lesson plans for 6 book club meetings focused on Figurative Language
  • 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 Wishtree by Katherine Applegate. A copy of the book is not included in this set of resources.
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Red is a 216-year-old Northern red oak who is home to many animals. Additionally, he is the community’s wishtree which means he hears the secrets, hopes, and dreams of many, including the young girl next door. Samar is different from the others in the neighborhood, but wishes for nothing more than a friend. Red, with the help of his animal residents, sets out to make her wish come true! Author Katherine Applegate makes the non-human characters come to life with beautiful detail, making Wishtree an ideal text for a Book Club exploring figurative language.
  • Included in this resource
  • Lesson plans for 6 book club meetings focused on Figurative Language
  • 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 Wishtree by Katherine Applegate. 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 figurative language, instructional objectives for each of the Book Club meetings, and a list of the materials and preparation necessary to host the Wishtree Book Club.

Author Katherine Applegate's use of figurative language throughout Wishtree makes the characters come to life for the reader. Throughout this Book Club, students will identify and examine various types of figurative language and explore the impact its use has on the reader's experience.

Readers will begin their exploration of the use of figurative language in Wishtree by diving into personification. Through this meeting's discussion, students will see how author Katherine Applegate helps readers connect to the non-human characters by giving them human characteristics.

This Wishtree Book Club meeting focuses on how similes help the reader to better understand what the author, Katherine Applegate, is trying to communicate. Discussion also includes what to do when you encounter a comparison (simile) that you don't understand.

When students take a closer look at the metaphors found in Wishtree by Katherine Applegate, they will see how comparing two things this way allows the author to use words to create vivid mental images for the reader.

Readers will connect to Red's use of common idioms; especially when he is "philosophizing". Students will enjoy making the idioms Katherine Applegate included in Wishtree come to life by sketching their literal meanings.

This final Wishtree Book Club meeting provides an opportunity for students to work collaboratively to showcase their learning related to figurative language. The culminating activity will provide a stunning visual representation of the knowledge that they have gained.

Use this six-question assessment to determine whether or not students understand the key concepts associated with figurative language.
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Read the Book
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Teacher Guides
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Standard Alignment
Book Title:
Wishtree
Book Author:
Katherine Applegate
Grade Level:
5
Genre(s):
Fantasy
F&P Guided Reading Level:
T
DRA Level:
40
Reading Recovery Level:
40
Theme(s):
Friendship, Social Awareness
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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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