Lesson Plan

Activity

Explore the reading more deeply with a visual or oral language activity.

Character Profile Chart

Have students fill out a Character Profile on John filling in only one trait for now but coming back to it as the story moves on.

Fill out the Character Profile Chart on each character you wish to analyze

1. Write the name of the character in the box in the middle of the chart.
2. Think of 4 characteristics, or traits, that the character has. Describe each with a key word or phrase and write it down one of the 4 boxes that surround the name.
3. For each trait, find 2 concrete examples of it in the story. Write each in one of the 2 boxes attached to each trait box.  Continue this until you have 2 examples for each of the 4 traits

Discussion

Ask discussion questions of all 9 types (see Day 1).

Key Questions

1. Why does John play pranks at school?
2. Do other students like John? Do you think teachers like John? Why or why not?
3. Is it fair that John takes time away from students who are trying to focus on school?
4. What event or character is the author hinting at? Why do you think the author is foreshadowing here?
5. Does John seem like a nice person? Why or why not?
6. Do you know any students who are like John? Can you trust them? Why or why not?

Activity

Explore the reading more deeply with a visual or oral language activity.

Character Profile Chart

Have students fill in the character profile on Lorraine again filling in only one trait and saving to fill in more as story goes on. Think about the differences that you can already see between the characters and how they might affect the story.

Directions:

Fill out the Character Profile Chart on each character you wish to analyze

1. Write the name of the character in the box in the middle of the chart.
2. Think of 4 characteristics, or traits, that the character has.  Describe each with a key or phrase and write it down one of the 4 boxes that surround the name.
3. For each trait, find 2 concrete examples of it in the story. Write each in one of the 2 boxes attached to each trait box.  Continue this until you have 2 examples for each of the 4 traits.

Discussion

Ask discussion questions of all 9 types (see Day 1).

Key Questions

1. Why do you think Lorraine is so focused on looks?
2. Why are Lorraine and John friends?
3. Why do you think Lorraine is so negative about herself?
4. Is Lorraine’s story more credible than John’s? Why or why not?
5. Why do you think the author chose to have two narrators for this book?
6. What effect on the reader does telling the story from multiple points of view have?
7. Is John as compassionate as Lorraine is? Is Lorraine as compassionate as she thinks she is? Where do you see examples of this in the text?
8. Would you want Lorraine as a friend? Why or why not?

Activity

Explore the reading more deeply with a visual or oral language activity.

Story Prop

Have the students design a story prop of a telephone. They can sketch and color it, then cut it out. Include speech bubbles around it depicting a conversation between John or Lorraine and another friend explaining why they are prank calling people. Only include the speech bubbles from John or Lorraine’s side of the conversation.

Story Prop

Materials:

• construction paper, or other stiff paper
• pencils, pens, crayons, markers
• scissors, glue sticks if desired

Step One: Identify an important object in the story.

1. If you were acting out this story, what objects in the story would you want on the stage for people to see?

2. Pick one object to make.

Step Two: Make a colorful 9 x 12 inch version of the object.

Step Three: Put the prop you make up with others on the wall.

Variations for the Prop

1. Make a 3 dimensional or life size version of the prop.

2. Create a bulletin board with cut outs or drawings of each prop.

3. Put a label with the name of each object underneath the prop.

4. Using a smaller piece of paper [binder paper size]; make a mini-wall with small drawings of 10 important objects in the story.

Variations for Writing

• Write a paragraph describing this prop.
• Write a paragraph describing this prop as it is being used or observed by a character in the story. This could be during the story, or in the future.

Discussion

Ask discussion questions of all 9 types (see Day 1).

Key Questions

1. Why does John like that the Pigman called them delightful?
2. What does John seem to think about Lorraine?
3. Why does John choose the names he does for his friends and his parents?
4. Why does John “go crazy” when he feels like he’s not being trusted? Do you think he deserves trust?
5. John denies any wrongdoing in the Pigman’s death. Do you think he feels guilty?
6. How does the author influence the opinions of the readers about the characters?

Activity

Explore the reading more deeply with a visual or oral language activity.

Character Interaction Chart

Start to fill in the character interaction chart on John, Mr. Pignati and Lorraine.  You will only start to fill this in, since they have not officially met yet.

Fill out the Character Interaction Chart for 3 characters

1. Choose 3 characters you have profiled and wish to analyze. Fill the name of each character in one of the 3 boxes.
2. Each character box has another character box on each side. On the side of the first character box near the second character box, write down what the first character thinks about the second character, and how the first character interacts or gets along with, the second character. 
3. Then do the same thing for how the second character thinks about and interacts with the first, in the second characters box.
4. Continue doing this until you have filled out each box: the second for the third, the third for the second, the third for the first and the first for the third.

Discussion

Ask discussion questions of all 9 types (see Day 1).

Key Questions

1. Why does Lorraine consider Norton and Dennis disturbed, but think that she and John are normal?
2. Why does Lorraine go along with the telephone prank?
3. How do you think Lorraine will feel about taking money from Mr. Pignati?
4. Does she hold herself responsible for getting Mr. Pignati involved?
5. What do you think about Mr. Pignati so far?
6. Why do you think John “prevaricates” so much?
7. Why does the author include information about the characters’ parents in the novel?
8. Why do the characters feel that they need to start at the beginning of their story?

Activity

Explore the reading more deeply with a visual or oral language activity.

Drawing

Draw a pig that you might see in Mr. Pignati’s wife’s pig collection. Why do you think she collects pigs?

Discussion

Ask discussion questions of all 9 types (see Day 1).

Key Questions

1. Why does John deny gluing the phone?
2. How does John convince Lorraine to go with him?
3. What happens that makes Lorraine decide to go with John after all?
4. What kind of person do you think Mr. Pignati is?
5. Why do you think the author decided to make Mr. Pignati this way?
6. At what point could Lorraine have stopped Mr. Pignati from giving them money?
7. Why does John like Mr. Pignati?
8. How does John justify taking this man’s money under false pretense?

Activity

Explore the reading more deeply with a visual or oral language activity.

Sketch

Have the students sketch a picture of some part of the scene at the zoo on pp. 51–59. They can include whichever characters or images resonate with them most strongly. Have the students discuss why they chose the parts of the scene that they did, and how they think the way the author wrote that scene influenced their choices and perception of it.

Setting Sketch: Sketch the Visual Details

• paper suitable for drawing, like 9x12 manila paper
• pencil, pen, crayon, marker or chalk as desired

Step One: List the details

1. Read pages
2. Make a list of all the details

Step Two: Draw a sketch

Discussion

Ask discussion questions of all 9 types (see Day 1).

Key Questions

1. How important was the $10 John took from Mr. Pignati, based on what John bought with it?
2. Why won’t John’s parents give him money?
3. Why is Lorraine’s mom complaining? What is their financial situation?
4. How important is it to Lorraine’s mom that her daughter is in school?
5. Why do you think John and Lorraine decided to go to the zoo with Mr. Pignati after they took his money?
6. Why do you think the author made the characters’ parents the way he did?
7. How does the inclusion of details about the parents influence readers?

Activity

Explore the reading more deeply with a visual or oral language activity.

Open Mind Portrait

Have students do a portrait of one of the characters: Lorraine, John, Mr. Pignati, John’s mother, the bore, or Lorraine’s mother.

Materials:

• large piece of stiff paper for each character, like 11x17 oak tag
• paper for bubbles with scissors and glue sticks
• markers, crayons, pens, pencils, or paint
• construction or tissue paper, scissors and glue sticks if desired

Step One:  create a large head shot of the character

1. Imagine what you think the character looks like from the descriptions in the text as well as your imagination. You can make a list of these details to help you draw the character, if you wish.
2. Decide how much of the character you wish to show: just the head and face? from the shoulders up? from the waist up? the whole person? You might want to include at least the shoulders to include some clothing details.  You might want to show the size differences between characters.
3. Draw the characters head shot including the face on the large piece of paper. You could also cut the paper to form the head. 
4. Illustrate your portrait with colors, construction paper or whatever will make the character colorful.

Step Two:  place cartoon bubbles of character thoughts around the portrait

1. Cut cartoon bubbles out.
2. Write things the character thinks, or says to him, on each bubble.
3. Put the bubbles up around the portrait.

Step Three:  add bubbles as you learn new things about the character

1. Read the story further and identify new things you have learned about the character, or ways the character has changed.
2. Follow step 2 to create and place additional bubbles.

Variations of this Open Mind Portrait

1. You can use this process for any character in the story
2. You can use bubbles for what the character says, says to him or her, or does. You could make each of these different colors if you wish.
3. You could add bubbles for what the character learns, or ways the character changes, and use different colors for each.
4. You could use different colors for the beginning, middle and end of the story. Remember in the beginning you are introduced to the setting, the characters and the problems they have.  In the middle you learn about the roadblocks to the characters solving their problems, and conflicts occur.  In the end of the story those conflicts reach a peak and then resolve with a resolution of the character’s problems.
5. You could use different colors for the phases you see in a story or the development of a particular character.
6. Instead of using bubbles you could write the bubble contents on the back of the portrait. You could use any of the variations above with color or print, or create columns or boxes for different categories or phases.
7. You could literally open the head like a hinge and list the contents [as though they were escaping from the space] using any of these variations.
8. You could make an Open Mind Portrait of yourself using any of the above variations.

 Variations for Writing

1. You could use the OMP to help write a character sketch, or to help decide what a character might do in a story.

Discussion

Ask discussion questions of all 9 types (see Day 1).

Key Questions

1. What does John realize about himself in the cemetery one day?
2. What does John’s father want for his son?
3. How would you feel if your father thought this way about you?
4. Why does John’s mom want him to go to his friend’s house?
5. What is the visit like at Mr. Pignati’s?
6. How does Mr. Pignati treat the two kids?
7. Why do you think that author chooses to depict Mr. Pignati in the manner?
8. What does John do behind Mr. Pignati’s back?

Activity

Explore the reading more deeply with a visual or oral language activity.

Advertisement

Have the students design an advertisement for one of the purchases Mr. Pignati made for John and Lorraine.

Discussion

Ask discussion questions of all 9 types (see Day 1).

Key Questions

1. What do you think of Lorraine’s mother? Is she a nice person?
2. What does Lorraine think of her mother?
3. Why do John and Lorraine like shopping with Mr. Pignati?
4. Why do you think Mr. Pignati likes buying things for John and Lorraine?
5. Is it right for Mr. Pignati to be spending so much money on John and Lorraine?
6. Why don’t John and Lorraine tell their parents about Mr. Pignati?
7. Why does the author decide to have the characters keep Mr. Pignati a secret?

Activity

Explore the reading more deeply with a visual or oral language activity.

Letter

Write a letter to “Dear Alice” as John, Lorraine, or Mr. Pignati asking advice on their current situation. (“Is it right for me to take advantage of Mr. Pignati’s kindness? How do I get out of the situation?” etc.). Exchange letters with a classmate and write a response to the question.

Discussion

Ask discussion questions of all 9 types (see Day 1).

Key Questions

1. Why is John being protective of Mr. Pignati?
2. Why is Norton so curious about Mr. Pignati?
3. Do you think John and Norton are that different?
4. Why is John unhappy with his parents?
5. How does the author depict John’s unhappiness, and why is his unhappiness important for understanding the John himself?
6. What should John do if he really cares about Mr. Pignati?
7. What would you do if you had a friend like Mr. Pignati?

Activity

Explore the reading more deeply with a visual or oral language activity.

One possible activity: Play the psychological game on page 106 and 107. Before turning the page, have the students write down their answers. Reveal the supposed meaning and have the students debate or discuss briefly why they chose the way they did, and who is responsible for the wife’s death.

Discussion

Ask discussion questions of all 9 types (see Day 1).

Key Questions

1. Why does Mr. Pignati look so down?
2. Why is Lorraine’s mother always trying to keep Lorraine away from boys?
3. What is the situation with Lorraine’s father?
4. Do you think Mr. Pignati has forgiven John and Lorraine? Why or why not?
5. Why does the author leave these details ambiguous?
6. What do you think will happen to Mr. Pignati?
7. What do you think John and Lorraine will do?

Activity

Explore the reading more deeply with a visual or oral language activity.

Venn Diagram

Fill in a Venn diagram on John and Lorraine.

Fill out the Venn Diagram Box

1. Decide on 2 characters, or settings, or events, or other variables you wish to analyze in the story, chapter or segment you have read. Label each of the 2 circles.
2. Where the 2 circles overlap, write the way these two are alike.
3. Where the circles are distinct, write down how each is different.

Variations of the 6g6

1. You can do all of these, one of these, or any combination that makes sense.
2. The g6 can be done on worksheets, or written on big pieces of paper, like chart paper or butcher paper. They can also be written on a white board or black board; the shape of each graphic organizer is easy to copy.
3. When you are analyzing a story, you can copy each graphic organizer on a piece of paper and quickly take the story apart. This can be a helpful strategy on a test.
4. You can do this individually, in pairs, in a small group, or as part of a large group. A class can divide in teams where each team does one organizer and then presents it to the rest of the class.  If you do all 6 of the g6 with 3 character profiles, you will need 8 teams.
5. You can use the g6 in reverse to design a story you wish to write. Create the charts in the following order, making story decision at each step:

Discussion

Ask discussion questions of all 9 types (see Day 1).

Key Questions

1. Why do John and Lorraine visit Mr. Pignati as his children?
2. What “should" John and Lorraine be doing?
3. How do they act once they are at Mr. Pignati’s home?
4. What are your predictions for what will happen next?
5. How does it feel when someone trusts you with his or her home and family?
6. What would you do if someone gave you keys to their home and trusted you to do the right thing?
7. How does John and Lorraine’s kiss complicate their relationship?
8. Why do you think the author decided to have them kiss?

Activity

Explore the reading more deeply with a visual or oral language activity.

One possible activity: Have students retell this observing John and Lorraine from a third person point of view. What do we read between the lines about with both characters?  What kind of decisions will they make with an empty house?

Discussion

Ask discussion questions of all 9 types (see Day 1).

Key Questions

1. Why is John’s dad mad at him? Is he justified being upset with his son?
2. How much school do you think John and Lorraine have missed?
3. Why don’t John’s parents worry about his not being home?
4. Why does the author include this information, and how does it impact your reading of the novel?
5. Is Lorraine’s mom an effective parent?
6. What do you predict will happen in the next chapter?
7. Have you ever been left home alone? What did you do? Why?

Activity

Explore the reading more deeply with a visual or oral language activity.

Advertisement

Create an advertisement for John and Lorraine’s party. Make sure to include all of the important details, and illustrate it to make the ad eye catching and interesting.

Advertisement for a Party

Materials:

• stiff paper 9x12 to 11x17
• pencils, pens, crayons, markers
• construction paper, scissors, glue sticks if desired

Step One:  Make a list of the details of the Party

1. Read pages that the advertisement will cover.
2. Make a list of the details in the reading such as whether location, people, houses etc.

Step Two:  Write an ad with a clear illustration

1. Write an appealing ad in 1 or 2 paragraphs detailing all of the information and making it sound interesting.
2. Illustrate the ad with a picture that would entice people to come to the party.

Variations for the Ad

1. 1. Write the ad if it were used in the future or in the past.
2. 2. Prepare the ad as a magazine ad with an emphasis on visuals. 
   Or do it as a billboard, TV ad, radio ad, etc.
3. 3. This process can be used for detailing any solution to a defined problem, and is a great pre-writing activity for a problem-solution essay.

Discussion

Ask discussion questions of all 9 types (see Day 1).

Key Questions

1. When did the party get out of hand?
2. Do you think that Lorraine was as guilty as the rest?
3. How do you think Mr. Pignati felt when he got home?
4. How would you feel if someone did that to you?
5. How do you think John and Lorraine felt when they saw Mr. Pignati?
6. What was destroyed in Mr. Pignati’s house? Why is this significant?
7. How did the author foreshadow this destruction earlier in the novel?
8. Who will John and Lorraine blame for the destruction of the house?
9. Who was really at fault for the entire party?

Activity

Explore the reading more deeply with a visual or oral language activity.

Open Mind Portrait

Create a portrait of a character you did not use for the previous portrait. (John, Lorraine, Mr. Pignati, Lorraine’s mother, the police officer, or John’s dad)

Discussion

Ask discussion questions of all 9 types (see Day 1).

Key Questions

1. How would you act if you were Lorraine’s mother?
2. How would you feel if you were Mr. Pignati?
3. Do you think John has taken responsibility for what he has done? Why or why not?
4. Do you think Lorraine has taken responsibility for what she has done? Why or why not?
5. Do you feel there were real consequences for John and Lorraine? What were they?
6. Are John and Lorraine responsible for Mr. Pignati’s death? Why or why not?

Activity

Explore the reading more deeply with a visual or oral language activity.

Sketch

Sketch a picture of how John or Lorraine looked after Mr. Pignati’s death. Try to include the details mentioned in the novel.

Setting Sketch:  Sketch the Visual Details

Materials:

• paper suitable for drawing, like 9x12 manila paper
• pencil, pen, crayon, marker or chalk as desired

Step One:  List the details

1. Read pages
2. Make a list of all the details

Step Two:  Draw a sketch

Variations of this Sketch

1. The same process can be used to create a setting sketch for any story.
2. The same process can be used for create a visual of the future wishes of characters in any story.

Variations for Writing

This sketch can be used to help write a setting paragraph.

Discussion

Ask discussion questions of all 9 types (see Day 1).

Key Questions

1. Why does John stay with Mr. Pignati?
2. Why does Lorraine have to walk away?
3. What have John and Lorraine lost?
4. How would you feel if you were in this situation? Guilty? Hurt? Afraid?
5. What do you think John and Lorraine have learned from this?
6. Did Mr. Pignati have to give his life for Lorraine and John to learn this lesson? Why or why not?
7. Why did the author ultimately choose to have Mr. Pignati die at the end of the novel?