Sunday, May 11, 2014

Numbers

Numbers

Bibliographic Information
Ward, Rachel. Numbers. Chicken House, New York. 2010.

Plot Description
Jem is a fifteen-year old girl living in England. Her mother died and she has been in and out of foster homes ever since. However, Jem is special. When she looks at people she sees eight numbers: month, day, and year. It is the date of their death. Because of this Jem avoids getting too close to people, she can barely look them in the eye. It is burden for Jem; it prevents her from developing relationships. When she meets Spider, that all changes. She sees his death date, and it’s coming up soon. She tries to stay away, yet she is drawn to him. Jem and Spider are in London when there is a bombing. They are in the wrong place at the wrong time, and now the police are looking for them.

Quantitative Reading Level
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 4.1
Flesch-Kincaid Reading Ease: 84.5
ATOS Level: 4.4

Qualitative Reading Level

Meaning: Middle Low/high. Text contains multiple layers of meaning.

Structure: Middle Low/High. The narrative structure is largely simple, more explicit than implicit and is largely conventional. Narration does not shift in point of view. The order of events is chronological, there is some use of flashbacks.

Language: Middle Low/High: Text contains use of figurative language or irony. The language is largely contemporary, familiar, conversational language that is explicit. The text is rarely unfamiliar, archaic, domain-specific or overly academic.

Knowledge Demands: Middle Low. Explores a single complex theme, experiences portrayed are common to many readers.The text requires some cultural/literary knowledge.

Content Area
English

Subject Area Tag
English, Reading for Pleasure: Chapter Books, Middle School or High School

Content Area Standard
New York State Content Area Standard (Grades 6-12)
1. Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.
2. Determine central ideas or themes of a text and analyze their development; summarize the key supporting details and ideas.
3. Analyze how and why individuals, events, and ideas develop and interact over the course of a text.
4. Interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text, including determining technical,  connotative, and figurative meanings, and analyze how specific word choices shape meaning or tone.
5. Analyze the structure of texts, including how specific sentences, paragraphs, and larger portions of the text (e.g., a section, chapter, scene, or stanza) relate to each other and the whole.
6. Assess how point of view or purpose shapes the content and style of a text.
7. Integrate and evaluate content presented in diverse formats and media, including visually and quantitatively, as well as in words.
9. Analyze how two or more texts address similar themes or topics in order to build knowledge or to compare the approaches the authors take.
10. Read and comprehend complex literary and informational texts independently and proficiently.
11. Respond to literature by employing knowledge of literary language, textual features, and forms to read and comprehend, reflect upon, and interpret literary texts from a variety of genres and a wide spectrum of American and world cultures.

Curriculum Suggestions
  • Use as suggestion for pleasure reading
  • Hero myth. Is Jem a hero, victim or both?


Links to Supporting Digital Content
Author website

http://www.rachelwardbooks.com/

*photo obtained from Goodreads

No comments:

Post a Comment