Thank you for being part of that possibility...

Transcription

1 Dear Educator, My mother, Betty DiCamillo, was an elementary school teacher and I often rode to school with her. This meant that I was the first student to arrive and the last one to leave. My mother loved teach i n g. She couldn t wait to get to the cl a s s room each morning and she hated to leave school at the end of the day. She cared passionately about children learning to read. It is an incredible thing, then, for me to be writing you this letter, to know that my book Because of Winn-Dixie has been made into su ch a be a utiful, funny, m oving movie and that yo u, as te ach ers, will be able to share it, discuss it, and hopefully, delight in it with your students. Opal s story is about loss and love and friendship and forgiveness and community and hope. In short, it is about life. There is beauty and tenderness and despair in this movie, and because of those themes, the film has received a PG rating. It is my grand and outrageous hope that the movie wi ll lead ch i l d ren to the book and that the book wi ll lead them to other books, and that because of Winn-Dixie, many children will become lifelong readers. It s a lot to hope for, I know; but wouldn t it be a fabulous thing if that happened? I feel like it would be a tribute to my mother, and to teachers and librarians and educators everywhere. Thank you for being part of that possibility... With warm wishes, Kate DiCamillo

2 Film Synopsis: Based on the best-selling book, Because of Winn-Dixie is the heartwarming tail of a young girl (AnnaSophia Robb) whose life is changed by a scruffy, fun-loving pooch she names Winn-Dixie. The special bond between them works magic on her reserved dad (Jeff Daniels) and the eccentric townspeople they meet during an unforgettable summer. The Because of Winn-Dixie Educator s Guide DVD Edition offers you and your students activities based on Because of Winn-Dixie s central themes of friendship, community, and caring for others. These stand-alone lessons and adaptations are marked with an asterisk (*) below. As a supplemental guide, DVD chapter listings are identified to help you select just the right scene or scenes to add even more fun to these lessons. LESSON PLANS FOR GRADES Because of You! *Use this panel to encourage students to think about specific ways to be a friend like Winn-Dixie was to the citizens of Naomi. Suggested Supplemental DVD Chapter: 20 Planning a Party 2. Naomi or Your Neighborhood *Use this comprehension exercise for students to demonstrate knowledge of main characters and settings found in Because of Winn-Dixie by drawing them on a map. Suggested Supplemental DVD Chapters: Ch.1 Main Titles/Naomi, Ch.4 Splish Splash, Ch.5 Friends, Ch.8 War and Peace, Ch.9 Magic Man, Ch.10 Ratcatcher, Ch.15 Bottle Tree, Ch.19 The Tenth Thing *Invite students who haven t seen the movie or read the book to make a map of their community showing people and places important to them. 3. Littmus Lozenges: Sweet and Sorrowful *Use this mapping page to have students establish causality of events found in the story. Suggested Supplemental DVD Chapters: Ch.16 Sweetness and Sorro w, C h. 2 4 Hallelujah/End Ti t l e s * Invite students who haven t seen the movie or read the book to make a similarly labeled map of friendships that have made their lives a little sweeter. 4. Make Your Own Friendship Movie! Use this movie panel page to encourage students to illustrate their favorite scene from the movie or an original friendship. 5. Name the Names! Use this panel as a literal comprehension and factual recall activity for students by having them fill in the crossword puzzle. Suggested Supplemental DVD Chapters: Ch.1 Main Titles/Naomi, Ch.5 Friends, Ch.8 War and Peace, Ch.9 Magic Man, Ch.11 The Witch s House, Ch.19 The Tenth Thing NATIONAL STANDARDS Language Arts: NCTE/IRA Standard 4: Communication Skills Character Education: Chicago Public Schools Character Education Standard 1: Caring Language Arts: NCTE/IRA Standard 6: Applying Knowledge Language Arts: NCTE/IRA Standard 3: Evaluation Strategies Visual Arts: CNAE Standard 2: Using Knowledge of S t ru c t u res and Functions Language Arts: NCTE/IRA Standard 3: Evaluation Strategies Answers to Name the Names!: DOWN: 2. Preacher; 3. Winn-Dixie; 5. Pie; 7. Otis; 8. Littmus; 10. Opal; 11. Dewberry. ACROSS: 1. Dump; 4. Amanda; 6. Naomi; 9. Tolstoy; 12. Gertrude; 13. Block Comments? Suggestions? Questions? Walden Media would love to hear back from educators like you. Please let us know how you felt about this guide and/or any other Walden Media materials you ve used in the past. Go to Thank you for your support! The activities on this poster may be reproduced for educational purposes only. Film poster reprinted courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. Stills 2004 Winn Productions, LLC. Text and design 2004 Walden Media, LLC. Walden Media is a registered trademark of Walden Media, LLC. The Walden Media skipping stone logo is a trademark of Walden Media, LLC. All rights reserved. Because of Winn-Dixie book cover art by Chris Sheban, copyright Reprinted courtesy of Candlewick Press. All rights reserved.

3 Because of You Take Home Activity Directions: In Because of Winn-Dixie, the people of Naomi, Florida, learned to help one another and grow to become friends. The kind actions of one person can touch many people. Fill in the circles below with the names of people (friends, neighbors, or family members) to whom you can lend a hand and be a good friend. Below each name, write how you can be a friend to the person. For example: I can be a friend to my little sister by reading to her. Name Name Because of Your Name Name Name A Note to Parents: Your child is participating in an educational program based on the film Because of Winn-Dixie. Do this activity together.

4 Naomi or Your Neighborhood Directions: In Because of Winn-Dixie, the people of Naomi, Florida really didn t get to know one another until Winn-Dixie came along. Do you know the people in your neighborhood? You have the choice... in the space provided below you may draw a map of your neighborhood and label the homes and landmarks that are important to you (e.g., park, school, playground), or, if you know the Because of Winn-Dixie story, draw a map of Naomi, Florida. Fill in these locations on your map: Gertrude s Pet Shop, Gloria Dump s House, Block Memorial Library, Open Arms Baptist Church, Littmus Lozenge Factory, and Friendly Corners Trailer Park. If you choose the latter, show where these characters would most likely be found in Naomi: Gloria Dump, Otis, Miss Franny Block, the Preacher, Winn-Dixie, and Opal.

5 Littmus Lozenges: Sweet & Sorrowful When the characters in Because of Winn-Dixie eat Littmus Lozenges, they experience sweet and sad feelings, a combination known as melancholy. Each character has been touched by another character in a way that helps make their lives taste a little sweeter. Directions: Make a web that shows the relationships that have been created in Naomi, Florida. On the lines inside each person s lozenge, write what made that person feel melancholy or sorrowful. Draw arrows between lozenges and write on the lines of the arrow what each character did to make another character s life a little sweeter. Two have been done for you as an example. Feel free to make a similar map of your own friendships if you haven t seen the movie or read the book. OPAL He became Opal s first friend. _ PREACHER OTIS GLORIA DUMP FRANNY BLOCK _ AMANDA

6 Make Your Own Friendship Movie! Directions: Use these film frames to illustrate the opening scenes of a movie about friendship. Or use the frames to draw your favorite friendship scene from Because of Winn-Dixie. Describe, in complete sentences, the action of each film frame below each drawing.

7 Name the Names! DOWN 2. His job title is also what his daughter calls him. 3. This dog is discovered in a grocery store and then named after it. 5. They call her Sweetie. 7. He sings and plays for the animals in the pet shop. 8. He was a soldier in the Civil War and his first name is the name of a candy. 10. Her last name is Buloni. 11. Opal argues with Stevie and Dunlap Directions: Because of Winn-Dixie is filled with people and places you won t forget! To help you remember them, fill in this crossword puzzle ACROSS 1. Some people think Gloria is a witch. 4. Has a pinched face. 6. The name of the town in Florida where this story takes place. 9. The bear snatched up the book War and Peace by Leo. 12. The name of a bird who doesn t like dogs is. 13. Miss runs the library.

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