Title: Parrotfish
Author: Ellen Wittlinger
Copyright: 2007
Publisher: Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers
Reading Level:
Fountas and Pinnell: Q
Lexile: 790 L
Accelerated Reader: 4.7
A gut wrenching, emotionally driven, sensational text that everyone can relate to on an emotional level.
2 electronic resources to support/extend the text:
This is the
author’s website for the novel. On her website she has links to articles that
have been written about her book that provide clarification and discuss the
major themes of the book. She also includes a discussion guide for the novel
that teachers and students can use to monitor comprehension and discuss the
sensitive themes and topics that are brought up in the book. There is also a
book trailer and access to a trivia challenge that students can participate in
with other students who have read the novel.
This is a link to
a blog about Parrotfish. The blog
includes a summary of the novel, a book review, a different book trailer than
the one on the author’s website and essential questions from every chapter.
Students can read all of the information about the novel but can also interact
with other people who are reading the novel by commenting their answers to the
essential questions and replying to other comments that people have made.
Key Vocabulary:
1. transgender- A person who changes their body to represent
the sex that they
identify with because it was not the same as their biological sex.
2. Biological Sex- The reproductive organs that are represented
by male or
female.
3. Gender Identity- The identity that a person behaves and
acts like even if it is
not their biological sex.
4. Transsexual- A person who emotionally and physically
feels that they belong
to a different sex or gender identity.
5. Diversity- A range of different ideas and identities.
6. Pretentious- When someone attempts to impress someone by
acting with
more culture, talent, or importance than they actually have.
Before Reading Strategy:
Before reading, it is a good idea to have a mini lesson
about common terms and words related to the transgender community. It is
important that students are aware of what being transgender or transsexual
means before they begin reading. It is also good to give students background
and have other resources about LGBT issues around the classroom that they can
use for reference if they are ever confused or not understanding something.
Watching a video that discusses important terms and concepts surrounding this
topic would be a good introduction and will keep students more engaged than a
lecture from their teacher.
During Reading Strategy:
When the teacher gets about halfway through the read aloud,
create a fishbowl discussion about what has happened so far in the book and
anything else related to LGBTQ issues that students want to discuss but because of the sensitivity of these topics, it will not be a typical fishbowl. Instead of a few students sitting in the middle of the classroom, each student will have to create a blabberize video with their three questions and send them to the teacher.
The teacher will then pick a few students to sit in the middle of the fishbowl and will randomly play blabberize videos of questions that the students in the fishbowl will answer and discuss. The teacher can act as a facilitator and ask comprehension questions that are not asked in the videos. The teacher can also create their own blabberize video with comprehension questions that need to be discussed.
This activity will allow for students to practice their discussion
and listening skills and give the class an opportunity to work together to
create the discussion rather than answering questions directly from the
teacher.
After Reading Strategy:
After reading, it is important to debrief the content and information that was presented in this story. Some students may
have never read literature with a transgender character or even a character who
is not heterosexual. Give students time to think-pair-share about what they
learned, thought was interesting, have questions about, or enjoyed. After
students discuss, give them 3 post it notes. On one post it note, they will
write one thing they learned from the text. On the second, they will write one
question or comment that they still have. On the third, they will write what
they really liked or really disliked about the text.
Writing Activity to Demonstrate Inferential Comprehension:
Have students research about parrotfish. Give them links to
sources about what the fish look like and how they blend in, or not blend in,
on the ocean floor. After students have researched about the fish have them
write about why the author chose parrotfish as the title for this novel.
Students should include:
a) Explain what
a parrotfish is with at least 3 details.
b) Discuss the
main character, Grady, with at least 3 details.
c) Explain why the author used Parrotfish as the title and how they are
similar and different than Grady.
