There are themes of friendship, family, racism, courage and love. Everything you need to teach the novel maniac magee by jerry spinelli except the book. Better than book reports, these ideas will have your students think more complexly about the. At the beginning of the book, readers are introduced to jeffery magee, an orphan made to live with his aunt and uncle who hate each other. If the events in the novel merit it, write up a report as a social worker would on the conditions in the home and whether or not its a good environment for a child. Magee s athletic skills, combined with his nonjudgmental way, lead the people of two mills to overcome. He becomes a local legend for feats of athleticism and helpfulness, and his ignorance of sharp racial boundaries in the town. The relationship of kids to racial identity in maniac magee has been used as a topic in a number of studies. This lesson talks about the novel maniac magee, written by jerry spinelli.
Maniac stays to watch over the boys and because he has nowhere else to go. Have students predict what the character with this name might be like. I would not like that nickname because i would not want to be known for doing everything like a maniac. Explain that the book they will read is titled maniac magee. Whether you are big or small, young or old, there is always something that a reader can learn from the characters in this. It deals with racism and its effects on a young man who, though white, finds more warmth and kindness on the black side of town than on his own side. Supersummary, a modern alternative to sparknotes and cliffsnotes, offers highquality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. Section one contains literature circle meeting forms. Maniac tries to find a home, soothes tensions between rival factions on the tough side of town, and becomes a true hero.
See more ideas about maniac magee, 5th grade reading and teaching. You might try the following activities with the class before handing out the book. Customize the maniac magee book report maniac magee. This board focuses on jerry spinellis themes, writing styles, subject matter, genre, as well as other literary analysis found in his books maniac magee and stargirl. Middle school literature, literature circles, maniac magee, learn something new everyday. Click on the pictures or videos to go to the links.
It stuck with me more than in just a lifelong love of butterscotch krumpets, but also in the sweetness of the main character and the good that he finds in well, everyone. Maniac magee literature guide for grades 58 teachervision. In maniac magee, jerry spinelli writes a young adult novel in which the main character. But i think there is also something valuable in including books written by minority voices andor with minority characters. This is a good book for many themes, and fun and easy to read.
I have used this study guide with fifth grade and middle school. Maniac magee project choice board maniac magee projects. Parents need to know that jerry spinellis maniac magee is an exciting, moving, and sometimes funny story, brilliantly told, about an orphan boy who runs away from his feuding aunt and uncle at age 8 and makes a name and legend for himself in a racially divided town. A guide for using maniac magee in the classroom, grades 5.
A presentation of diaromas of maniac magee s homes. Watch to see which characters call jeffrey maniac and which do not. The students in elementary school also read it as a part of the curricula. Maniac magee is a heartwarming book first published 25 years ago. This newbery medal winner tells the mythical tale of a legendary hero. This is a very useful tool for leading a study of maniac magee. Jeffery lionel magee maniac magee genre of the story. The book organizes the novel study well, and the additional activities are creative and engaging. Maniac magee is a book that stuck with me long after i read it in fifth grade for the first time. Vocabulary lists and study guides, quizzes and tests with keys. The book starts by relating the legends which built up about maniac magee and its fun to go back to those first two pages when youve finished reading to see how far from the truth the legend has grown. Fifth graders read jerry spinellis, maniac magee, which focuses on homelessness, illiteracy, and racism. Spinelli has written the novel in third person he said, as opposed to i said, which is called first person, using an objective viewpoint in which the thoughts and feelings of the characters are not. First, maniac bribes russell and piper to attend school.
Maniac magee by jerry spinelli maniac magee summary. Spinelli books, what is theme, maniac magee, essay words, school plan. The unit is divided into three sections, and each section includes a wealth of resources. The story of jeffrey lionel magee, aka maniac, has become a school standard since its publication in 1990. My students typically complete their book jacket in. Jeffrey gets the nickname maniac after performing athletic feats of mythic proportions and appearing fearless in the face of bullies and other. Vocabulary, comprehension questions, and learning activities, divided by chapters. School worksheets, writing worksheets, worksheets for kids, printable. These projects help students work through its themes, characters, and events by creating a. Maniac magee in elementary school curricula essay 582 words.
Abby has taught elementary special education and has her masters degree in this area. Maniac magee enrichment project menu with nine noprep creative and fun novel. Published in the 1990s, spinelli decided to focus on an issue that was not widely discussed within the school systems and chose to inform fifth graders about segregation and the effect this can have on a persons moral character. Free maniac magee worksheets and literature unit for. Maniac magee by jerry spinelli lesson plans and teaching resources free. Download pdf maniac magee reading guide free online. Improve your students reading comprehension with readworks. The watsons go to birmingham is a great novel about racism and the civil rights movement, also for upper elementary lower middle. Maniac s parents abandoned him by dying, his aunt and uncle abandoned him emotionally by hating each other, maniac abandons the beales out of fear, grayson abandons maniac by dying, maniac struggles and, uh, kind of fails to not abandon russell and piper. Maniac magee by jerry spinelli novel guide teaching. Falling action maniac moves in with piper and russell mcnab, but their big, scary, alcoholic dad makes life difficult. See more ideas about maniac magee, 5th grade reading and book study. It also includes ideas of how to use the book in a middlegrades or high school classroom. An orphan with no place to call home, maniac magee enters the town of two mills, a town sharply divided by race.
Exploring themes of racism and inequality, it follows the story of an orphan boy looking for a home in the fictional town of two mills. Maniac magee is not just any book or story it is a lesson of life. Lessons and ideas books and authors top teaching blog teachers tool kit student activities. Maniac magee novel study unit activities book report distance learning.
Jeffrey lionel maniac magee is an orphan searching for a loving home when he finds himself in a small, segregated town in pennsylvania. Maniac magee by jerry spinelli lesson plans and teaching resources maniac magee vocabulary, comprehension questions, and learning activities, divided by chapters. Maniac magee by jerry spinelli is one of the best books ive ever taught my fifth graders. Climax maniac stays in a park in a baseball storage room, and his friend grayson accompanies him. In this lesson, well go into greater detail about the main characters.
Write their ideas on the board, then have a volunteer look up the word in a dictionary. This unit contains everything you need to facilitate a literature circle in your middle school or upper elementary classroom with the book maniac magee. In this novel unit, youll find 18 differentiated activities for maniac magee by. Access thousands of highquality, free k12 articles, and create online assignments with them for your students. Maniac magee is considered as an important literary work. Maniac magee by jerry spinelli scholastic inc, 2002 a largerthanlife hero confronts racism while living on the street. At the age of three, jeffrey magee loses both of his parents in a tragic accident.
This book report should be done after completing reading maniac magee. A guide for using maniac magee in the classroom literature units see more. The characters are compelling, realistic, and will challenge whatever tendency you may have towards clustering with your own. Maniac magee by jerry spinelli is a novel that introduces the human rights violation of racism to children in elementary schools.
This humorous yet poignant story tells of a superathletic teenager who bridges his small towns racial gap. Maniac magee lesson plans include student activities for figurative language, plot analysis, vocabulary, theme, and. Maniac magee book summary maniac magee is about jeffrey lionel magee s search for home and the racial prejudice in the town of two mills. Maniac magee novel study unit activities book report. Better than book reports, these ideas will have your students think more. This onepage guide includes a plot summary and brief analysis of maniac magee by jerry spinelli. He came into this world named jeffrey lionel magee, but when his parents died and his life changed, so did his name. Classroom and any other secured platform that is accepted by your school. Marcus willoughby maniac magee book report write about.
It won the 1991 newbery medal and remains a vital, relevant classic. Maniac magee topics for discussion jerry spinelli this study guide consists of approximately 30 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of maniac magee. Maniac becomes a legend in two mills, a town with an east end for blacks and a west end for whites. Maniac magee, lived with his parents until he was 3 years old. Maniac magee deals with important issues while presenting an engaging protagonist and compelling story. I have used this study guide with fifth grade and middle school, and highly recommend it. Maniac magee project choice board 5th grade ela, 5th. Without a place to call home, maniac bridges racial boundaries with his super athleticism, knotuntying abilities, and overall good character. I think maniac is a good nickname for jeffery because he can do almost anything and everything he does cannot be done by others. This literature unit guide is designed to be used alongside the soldseparately maniac magee by jerry spinelli. Theres more abandonment in maniac magee than in an aspca commercial. Maniac magee is a novel written by american author jerry spinelli and published in 1990. Book jacket project description page grading rubric halfpage design to save paper example photos of a completed book jacket different novel as example this maniac magee activity is an equal mix of writing and creativity that students love. Theres even a jump rope rhyme about magee that the kids can jump to and make up other verses for.
This prompt will help students think about friendship in the novel and in their own lives. Knot the whole truth the writer will analyze and discuss the tall tale format after reading jerry spinelli s tale of cobble s knot, told in chapter 20 of maniac magee. For example, if a social worker went to the mcnabs house in maniac mageeby jerry spinelli 1990, little, brown how would she describe the home and. A guide for using maniac magee in the classroom, grades 58 9781557345370.
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