Characters & Relationships
Which two main characters in Save Me a Seat become friends even though they come from different backgrounds?
Joe & Ravi
Where does most of A Long Walk to Water take place for Salva’s segment?
The African Sudan/Nile region and refugee camps
What basic need is central to Nya’s story in A Long Walk to Water?
Getting clean water
What is one theme shared by Save Me a Seat and Sylvia & Aki?
Friendship, standing up for fairness and inclusion
How many kids are in 5th grade?
42!
Who are the two children whose stories are told in A Long Walk to Water?
Salva & Nya
What is unique about the City of Ember’s setting?
It is an underground city designed to sustain people, with failing systems and little outside knowledge
What problem are Lina and Doon trying to solve in The City of Ember?
Restoring power, finding resources, and escaping the failing underground city
What lesson about hope appears in A Long Walk to Water?
Hope and persistence can help people survive and rebuild lives
Who is the elementary assistant head of school?
Mrs. Capers
In Sylvia & Aki, Sylvia and Aki are both around the same age. How do their family responsibilities differ?
Aki helps with farm/work and household chores; Sylvia helps her family and cares for siblings while also dealing with school exclusion.
In which U.S. state and historical period is Sylvia & Aki set?
California, during World War II era / 1940s
In Save Me a Seat, what common school challenge do Joe and Ravi face that affects their day-to-day lives?
bullying
How does The City of Ember explore the theme of curiosity or questioning authority?
Lina and Doon question the mayor's actions and follow clues to learn more about the outside world
Name one of the animals we met at McKinney Roughs
Heron, turtle, snake
Name one way the relationships between adults and children differ in The City of Ember compared to A Long Walk to Water.
In Ember, some adults protect children, but some kids have stronger morals than the adults. In A Long Walk to Water, adults often guide or lead groups through survival and migration but some adults exploit children.
Compare the school setting in Save Me a Seat to school in Sylvia & Aki
Save Me a Seat is set in a modern American elementary school with issues like bullying and fitting in; Sylvia & Aki shows segregated schools and legal barriers to attendance in 1940s California
Name one major obstacle Sylvia faces in Sylvia & Aki related to education.
Being denied access to a high-quality school due to racist/discriminatory policies
Give an example from any novel of a character showing resilience.
Salva/Nya shows resilience by surviving the journey and building wells; Lina/Doon persists in solving clues to help Ember; Joe/Ravi cope with bullying and adjust; Sylvia/Aki continue their fight for inclusion and a good education
Name all 8 5th grade advisors
Scriven, Drew, Tinney, Ms. Kim, Franco, Thomas, Bowman, Edelman
Compare how friendship helps the protagonists in two novels (hint: give one example from Save Me a Seat and one from The City of Ember).
In Save Me a Seat, friendship helps Joe and Ravi cope with bullying and school; in The City of Ember, Lina and Doon rely on friendship and teamwork to follow clues and escape
How does the physical environment shape a character’s choices in A Long Walk to Water and The City of Ember?
In A Long Walk to Water, scarce water forces Salva and others to travel long distances and make survival choices; in The City of Ember, failing systems and darkness force Lina and Doon to find an escape and make resourceful decisions.
Compare how two main characters respond to danger or life-threatening situations in A Long Walk to Water and Sylvia & Aki.
Salva responds by travelling long distances and leading others to safety; characters in Sylvia & Aki respond by seeking legal help or family-based strategies and resisting exclusion
Compare how the authors use perspective to teach empathy in two of the novels (choose any two)
In Save Me a Seat, the dual narrator (Joe and Ravi) shows different cultural viewpoints to build empathy; in A Long Walk to Water, alternating between Salva and Nya’s experiences shows different but connected struggles; etc.
On average, how many books did 5th graders complete in language arts over the year?
About 5