Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key by Jack Gantos
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Task 1: to become familiar with
the challenges students with learning differences have especially those with
ADHD Task 2: to experience reading
in the first person and the realistic fiction genre |
Daily Plan:
Basically we'll start reading a chapter in class, finish it at home &
discuss it the next day. |
Chapter 1:
Have you ever
seen anyone in school like Joey? How did you feel being in class with them? |
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Chapter 2: What did we learn about
Joey's family in Chapter 2? Joey talks about himself, his grandmother and
his father all being "wacked-out," what does he mean? What does his
grandmother do to calm herself down? Joey's mother and grandmother handle
him very differently, which do you think will help him the most? |
Chapter
3:
Look at page 19, what do you think about Joey's description of what happens
when Mrs. Maxy
talks to him?
Joey went to the doctor and was prescribed some medicine, what do you think
he is being treated for? Did it work? Why do the school nurse & doctor
differ in their opinions?
Why are the teachers and principal so worried about the pencil sharpener
incident? Any ideas or advice for Joey's mom or teachers about Joey yet?
What is "Mom's medicine"? What do you think about it?
On page 29, Joey's mom says she's worried about Joey slipping away. What did
she means?
Pretend you are Joey's classmate. Write a letter to Ms. Maxy telling her
your thoughts and feelings toward Joey being in your class. |
Chapter 4: In Chapter 4, Joey
swallows the key, how? Why did Mrs. Maxy cut the string? Think about the
choices everyone made about the key. What did Seth choose to do? If Seth had
made a different choice, do you think things would have turned out
differently?
On page 31 Joey tells about the mean kids in his neighborhood. Why do they
do these things to him? What advice would you give Joey about them?
What does Joey think about the Special Ed room? On page 39 he tells how he
kicked the chair until his heels were bruised. What is he thinking? How
would you feel if it was you instead of Joey? Do you think Joey belongs
there?
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Chapter 5: Think about what Seth
does. Is he making a responsible choice? What could you do to help Joey if
he were in your class.
What does Mrs. Maxy decide to do with the key? How does Mrs. Maxy feel about
Joey, can you tell?
On page 49, Joey describes his thoughts and trying to find the "why" of
things. Have you ever felt like that?
Why does Joey's mom start crying on page 50?
How does she "rescue" Joey on
page 51?
Read pages 52 - 53, does Joey want to be a good student?
This book is written in first-person, that is a person is telling the story
using "I." Why did the author choose first-person to tell this story? |
Chapter 6: So what happens at the
Amish farm? Why does Mrs. Maxy exclude Joey from the pies and pumpkins? Was
she right in doing so? How do her actions influence Joey? Can you think of
some other way she might have handled it?
Page 66, Ms Maxy talks to Joey about what he thinks he is doing and what he
does. Do you think she likes Joey or does she hate him?
What will the school do now? |
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Chapter 7:
What did Joey overhear when he hid on
the stage? Was this program truly just for the gifted and talented kids or
could the other students have benefited too? How does Joey plan to change
the world for the better? What happens when he runs with the scissors? Do
you agree with Joey when on page 76 he says he's a good kid? |
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Chapter 8:
Why is Joey being sent to another school for six weeks? On
page 82, Joey's mom says she pulled it all together so she could come back
to him and now it was Joey's turn. What does she mean? |
Chapter 9: What happens when Joey
tries to apologize to Maria? Talk about it from the point of view of Maria's
father. Did he handle the situation well?
What advice does Joey's mom give him about keeping a positive attitude on
page 87? |
Chapter 10: What did Joey see on
the bus when he was picked up? How does this bus make him feel (pg 91)?
Why is Joey so worried about the bus driver mistaking him for the new foster
kid? What do you think about Charlie, May & June?
On page 101, Special Ed tells Joey exactly why he is at this school, do you
agree with the school's decision to send him there?
Joey repeatedly says "I got dud meds" but on page 102, Special Ed lets Joey
know there's more to it than that. Do you agree with his statements? |
Chapter 11:Special Ed tells Joey
that his home life is a big part of his problem. Do you agree? Why or why
not?
Does Joey's mom love him? How do you know?
On Page 109, Mrs. Maxy comes to Joey's house. Can you tell how she feels
about Joey still?
Why does Joey play with the band-aids even after Special Ed said not to?
How does Special Ed fell about Joey, can you tell? |
Chapter 12:
What do we find out about How Joey's grandma treated him when
he lived with her? Why do you think she did this? How does Joey's mom feel
about it?
How would Joey's life be different Grandma stayed or if his mom had not come
back? |
Chapter 13: What happened in the
hospital gift shop? Why? Did Joey's mom handle it well?
What does Joey's mom tell him about his father? Why do you think Joey wants
to find his dad? On page 137, Joey's mom tells him she doesn't think it
would be a good idea. Do you agree with her? |
Chapter 14:When
Joey is sent to the special education center, no one considers it as a
punishment. Why not?
Why doesn't Joey's mom want him to get a dog big enough to eat Grandma?
Think about her feelings toward Grandma.
On page 142-143, Joey thinks about how he was finally on the road to getting
better. do you agree? What things has Joey done or not done to get better?
What have others done to help him get better? What things have people done
that haven't helped him?
Pg 154, Joey realizes something about himself. What is it? |
Chapter 15: Page 147-148, Special
Ed says "You gotta to face the hand you're dealt and deal with it, and make
your problems the smallest part of who you are." What does he mean?
On page 153, Mrs. Howard says something nice to Joey, do you agree with
her?
The book ends with Joey sitting quietly enjoying a book. What does this
foreshadow? What do you think about how the story ends? |
Activities:
ADHD simulator
Guest Speaker: Laura Campbell, school counselor |
