About the Book I ve been trying out some hobbies, A few things here and there. But how come no one warned me that first-timers should beware!? An endearing story about a spunky young girl who tries out different endeavors from ballet to karate and feels like she fails at each one, Not the Quitting Kind will touch the heart of every child who has ever felt like giving up. This inspirational tale, told in Roth s clever verse and Bishop s playful illustrations, is a must-share for educators who wish to encourage a sense of perseverance and confidence in young readers. Introduction Persistence and resilience rank highly among the many character traits we hope to develop in our students. Yet many students don t come endowed with the ability to stay the course and trust the learning process to lead them to success. Like the young narrator of Not the Quitting Kind, they may quit after too few attempts to learn something new, or may lack the self-confidence to fail many times before succeeding. This book will serve as an excellent discussion-starter about persistence. [Note: If your school teaches character traits, but persistence is not one of them, consider these synonyms: determination, diligence, self-confidence, patience, or tenacity.] Be sure to use this book to meet Common Core Reading Literature and Writing standards. In addition, you can use it as a springboard for a visual art activity. This teaching guide offers you many options to explore! This guide was prepared by Toni Buzzeo, M.A., M.L.I.S., author, educational consultant, and school librarian. www.tonibuzzeo.com
Reading Literature Standards Standard 3 RL K.3 With prompting and support, identify characters, settings, and major events in a story. RL 1.3 Describe characters, settings, and major events in a story, using key details. RL 2.3 Describe how characters in a story respond to major events and challenges. Keys to the Story After reading Not the Quitting Kind aloud, ask students: Who is the main character in the story? Do we know her name? If not, why not? Who are the other (secondary) characters in the story? Could the story happen without them? Where does the story take place/what is the setting? (See also: Map This Story activity on the following pages) What are the four most important events of the story? Additionally, for Grade Two students, ask them to think about how the main character responds to the major events of the story. Discuss her lack of persistence and self-confidence. Map This Story The events of Not the Quitting Kind take place throughout the main character s town. After reading the book aloud, begin by asking students to determine where each scene takes place. (Listen for these eight scene settings: on the sidewalk in front of her house, at the ballet studio, at the karate studio, in her bedroom at her house, at the park, at school, in the hallway at her house, and on the sidewalk in front of her house again). Next, select the appropriate grade level activity sheet (from the following pages) and ask students to complete the Map This Story activity independently or project the sheet onto your electronic white board and complete as a group activity.
Map This Story (Kindergarten and Grade 1) Where do the scenes take place? Which do we see first? Which comes next? Number the pictures below from 1 to 8 as they occur in the story.
Map This Story (Grade 2) Each time the main character tries something new, she fails. Look at each illustration below. Next to the picture, tell what happened next and what the main character did.
Standard 4 RL K.4 Ask and answer questions about unknown words in a text. RL 1.4 Identify words and phrases in stories or poems that suggest feelings or appeal to the senses. RL 2.4 Describe how words and phrases (e.g., regular beats, alliteration, rhymes, repeated lines) supply rhythm and meaning in a story, poem, or song. What s That Word? (Kindergarten) Some of the words in the story may be unfamiliar to kindergartners. After reading the story for the first time, ask students to try to determine the meaning of the following words using prior knowledge or context clues. For those words and phrases that are still a puzzle, use a primary level dictionary to determine the definition: beware heinie self-defense first-timers sass bouquet pop a wheelie plié designs deflated karate overrated kung fu I ve Got a Feeling (Grade 1) Much of Not the Quitting Kind is about feelings. Read the story through the first time for simple enjoyment. Then, ask students to return with you to each page (or double-page spread) and determine what the main character s emotions are on that page. Ask students to support their answers by citing specific evidence in the text or illustrations. I ve Got Rhythm-and Rhyme (Grade 2) Not the Quitting Kind is a text written in rhymed verse. Challenge students, individually or in small groups, to rewrite the text from a single scene as unrhymed prose. After students complete the task, ask them to read the original and then their unrhymed prose version aloud. Discuss the effect that author Sarra J. Roth s rhymed verse has on their understanding and enjoyment of the text.
Standard 5 RL K.5 Recognize common types of texts (e.g. storybooks, poems). RL 1.5 Explain major differences between books that tell stories and books that give information, drawing on a wide reading of a range of text types. RL 2.5 Describe the overall structure of a story, including describing how the beginning introduces the story and the ending concludes the action. What Kind of Text? (Kindergarten) Before reading Not the Quitting Kind aloud, ask students what a poem is. Discuss their responses and then share at least two poems, one that rhymes and one that does not rhyme. Compare the two poems. Now, open Not the Quitting Kind and discuss the format of the text on the page. Ask: Does it look like a poem? After reading the book aloud, discuss the similarities and differences between the poems you shared and the text of the book. Informational or Literature? (Grade 1) Provide a selection of informational books from the library about character traits and/or emotions for students to browse. When they have completed their browsing, read Not the Quitting Kind aloud. Ask them to explain how this fiction book is different from the informational books they were browsing. Ask them to name additional fiction books to ensure that they understand the difference between literature and informational texts. A Pattern of Three (Grade 2) Not The Quitting Kind uses a pattern of three story structure. Explain that a pattern of three can use one of the two following formulas: try-and-fail, try-and-fail, try-and-succeed OR try-and-fail, try-and-fail, try-and-fail, then succeed. Discuss the difference between the two formulas and determine which pattern of three formula Not the Quitting Kind employs. Then invite students to complete the Four-Square Pattern of Three activity sheet (on the following page).
Four-Square Pattern of Three Fill in the events of Not the Quitting Kind to understand the organization author Sarra J. Roth employed when she created the story. 1 Wants to 2 Wants to But But And so she And so she 3 Wants to 4 But then finally when she But She decides to And so she And she succeeds!
Standard 6 RL K.6 With prompting and support, name the author and illustrator of a story and define the role of each in telling the story. RL 1.6 Identify who is telling the story at various points in a text. RL 2.6 Acknowledge differences in the points of view of characters, including by speaking in a different voice for each character when reading dialogue aloud. Who Is Telling This Story? Kindergarten: Assist students to accurately name author Sarra J. Roth and illustrator Tracy Bishop and explain the role of each in creating Not the Quitting Kind. Grade One and Two: Discuss the concept of point of view in fiction. Then ask students to identify who is narrating the story and whether there are any other narrators or point-ofview characters in Not the Quitting Kind. Grade Two: Ask students to practice reading aloud the two scenes in which the main character and her mother have a dialogue, using different voices to differentiate the two characters. Standard 7 RL K.7 With prompting and support, describe the relationship between illustrations and the story in which they appear (e.g., what moment in a story an illustration depicts). RL 1.7 Use illustrations and details in a story to describe its characters, setting, or events. RL 2.7 Use information gained from the illustrations and words in a print or digital text to demonstrate understanding of its characters, setting, or plot. A Picture is worth a thousand words Begin your exploration of Not the Quitting Kind by taking a picture walk through the story. Ask students to speculate about the events of the story by reading the illustrations alone. Next, read the text aloud while sharing the illustrations. Kindergarten: Ask students to describe which part of the text each illustration captures. Grade One and Two: Ask students to describe each of these in turn: characters, setting, and story events. For each response, ask whether they received this information from the illustrations, the text, or both. Invite them to cite specific details in the illustrations or text that informed their understanding.
Writing Standards W K.1 Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to compose opinion pieces in which they tell a reader the topic or the name of the book they are writing about and state an opinion or preference about the topic or book (e.g., My favorite book is...). W 1.1 Write opinion pieces in which they introduce the topic or name the book they are writing about, state an opinion, supply a reason for the opinion, and provide some sense of closure. W 2.1 Write opinion pieces in which they introduce the topic or book they are writing about, state an opinion, supply reasons that support the opinion, use linking words (e.g., because, and, also) to connect opinion and reasons, and provide a concluding statement or section. I ve Got an Opinion to Share After reading Not the Quitting Kind aloud, invite students to write a personal opinion piece about the book. Kindergarten: Students may use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to do so. Grade One: Ask students to include the title, state their opinion of the book, supply a reason for this opinion, and close the piece in a clear manner. Grade Two: Ask students to write a paragraph in which they include the title, state their opinion of the book, supply linking words to connect their opinions to the reasons that support those opinions, and write a concluding sentence.
W K.3 Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to narrate a single event or several loosely linked events, tell about the events in the order in which they occurred, and provide a reaction to what happened. W 1.3 Write narratives in which they recount two or more appropriately sequenced events, include some details regarding what happened, use temporal words to signal event order, and provide some sense of closure. W 2.3 Write narratives in which they recount a well-elaborated event or short sequence of events, include details to describe actions, thoughts, and feelings, use temporal words to signal event order, and provide a sense of closure. It Happened to Me! Most students have had an experience of trying something and failing to get it right during their early attempts. Invite them to write a personal narrative in which they recount a time that they tried to do something new and were not immediately successful. Ask them to write about the sequential events in the order they occurred. Kindergarten: Students may use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to do so. Grade One: Ask students to include details of their experience, use words that signal time sequence (e.g. first, second, then, etc.), and close the piece in a clear manner. Grade Two: Ask students to write a paragraph in which they describe their actions, thoughts, and feelings during the experience of learning something new. Instruct them to use words that signal time sequence (e.g. first, second, then, etc.), and to close with a concluding sentence. The Way I see it Art Extension activity Provide still-life arrangements of flowers, fruit, vegetables, toys, or another grouping of related objects at several tables around the room. Allow students to choose their favorite still-life. Invite them to create a painting in which they try to capture a likeness of the arrangement while also taking some chances and painting as freely as they wish. If desired, provide The Way I See It framed sheet (on the following page) for their paintings, or trim and glue their paintings into the frame.
The Way I see it
About the Author and Illustrator Sarra J. Roth, raised in Rockville Centre, New York, is a former elementary school art teacher with a passion for encouraging confidence, perseverance, and strength in her readers. Sarra s inspiration for her stories comes from her years as a devoted teacher, aunt, and mother of two beautiful sons. Not the Quitting Kind is Sarra s debut picture book. She resides in Scarsdale, New York. Tracy Bishop fell in love with drawing and telling stories through pictures from an early age. She grew up on a U.S. Army base just outside of Tokyo, Japan. Tracy received a degree in graphic design with a concentration in illustration/animation from San Jose State University, and went on to illustrate various book covers and board books. This is her first children s picture book. She resides in San Jose, California. www.peterpauper.com Illustrations Tracy Bishop