The Call of the Wild
Preview
The Call of the Wild by Jack London tells the story of Buck, a dog stolen from his home in California and sold to explorers in the Arctic north. He endures hardship, extreme cold, competitiveness between his rivals, and abuse from owners. This is a story of survival and courage. Jack London gives an accurate depiction of animal and human nature as they fight to survive.
For the purposes of this lesson we will be using Call of the Wild by Jack London ISBN# 0-553-21233-8.
Reading Notes
The reading requirement for most days is shorter than most CBL Lessons. On average 5-7 pages per day.
The lesson plans were written to meet the needs of a 4 week plan, they take into account the technical terms, historical significance/background, and language dialects, the breaks are at natural places in the reading. In addition, the lessons are written with a multitude of class and individual activities and web resources.
Map
This story starts in California and then into Alaska and the Arctic North. This is a good opportunity to visit AAA and get maps of the regions and have your student’s track Bucks journey or create your own as a class. A basic map of the Yukon Territory has been provided.
Class Project
Time Line
Create a class timeline that depicts the following three items:
Yukon Gold Rush
Have students tract the Yukon Gold Rush from 1896-1900.
The Call of the Wild
Have students maintain a timeline of daily reading facts.
Historical Time Line
Have students maintain a timeline of global historical events from 1890-1900. Conflict Chart
Create a class conflict chart (see example below)
|
1st person or thing involved in the conflict |
2nd person or thing involved in the conflict |
example and page from the book |
illustration |
|
|
Man Jack |
Vs |
man Mother |
2-3 Mother never was able to maintain a stable life for him |
You should be looking for conflicts that involve (but are not limited to☺
Man vs. man
Man vs. nature
Animal vs. man
Animal vs. nature
Theme Chart
The introduction discusses the themes of the novel. Create a “T” for the class. On one side list the themes. As you read about them give examples of each from the novel.
Integrity Chart “T” Chart
Create a class definition of integrity.
As you meet characters in the novel make notes on if they are living their lives with integrity. Give examples if they are. Also note how their behavior is not one of integrity and discuss other choices they could have made.
Curriculum Connections
There is a great deal of geography in this novel. As well as, science connections studying the seasons in the north and the aurora borealis. These will be items you may want to highlight in the lesson.
Additional Resources:
- Visit www.pbs.org for additional resources on the Klondike (Yukon Gold Rush).
- For information on the Klondike Expeience:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/gold/greetings.html
- For information on “woman’s experiences” and roles:
http://www.postalmuseum.si.edu/gold/women.html
- Visit the National Park Service
http://www.nps.gov/klgo/forteachers/curriculummaterials.htm
Locate: Teachers
Search: Curriculum materials
Final Writing Product
The final writing product for this novel is an expository essay. Details are located at the end of the lesson plan. A brief overview will follow for your information:
The unit theme for this novel is Leadership Requires Engagement .
“Integrity requires that the way I live my life is whole, entire, undivided, sound, coherent and principled. Integrity moves me to do difficult and new things not just easy and accustomed things.”
In very simplistic terms—Integrity is doing the right thing when no one else is looking.
- Buck
- John Thornton
- Francois & Perrault
- Hal, Charles, and Mercedes
All of these listed are very significant characters in The Call of the Wild. Some of them were men or animals with integrity and some were not. Choose one of the characters from the above list.
Write an essay that details how the character lived their life with integrity. What choices did they have to make and how did those choices affect them?
If they did not live a life of integrity what were the consequences of their actions?
In both situations relate what you can learn from the characters and how you can integrate integrity into your decision-making process.
Use a strong thesis statement with evidence to support it. You can use additional resources from primary and secondary sources. Relate life experience if it is relevant. Be clear and concise. Your essay should be 5 paragraphs in length.
Community Connection
The community connection is located on Day 19 of the lesson plans. You may want to start integrating components of it into your daily plan prior to that if you choose to have students participate in it while they are reading the novel. It can also be done as a standalone project.