My Great Big Book Blog: A Dog's Life: The Autobiography of a Stray

Written by Ann M. Martin

Published by Scholastic Press

Reading level: grades 3-5, ages 8-12, Lexile measure 870L

Suggested delivery: independent read, read aloud
Genre: Animal stories, Autobiography

Touching ~ Loving ~ Heartwarming ~ A Great Story ~ Beautifully Written

Summary:

Newbury Honor author Ann Martin tells a story from the point of view of a stray dog. Squirrel and her brother Bone start out their lives as puppies living in a toolshed behind someone's home. Their nurturing mother tends to their needs and cares for them by teaching them the skills they will need when they grow up as stray dogs like her. But to their shock, their mother is taken away, leaving her young puppies to fend for themselves. They two of them face busy highways, the changing of seasons, and gentle and brutal people. But just like that, Bone and Squirrel also become separated. Now, on her own, Squirrel is left to fend for herself and see where new friends and paths take her.

Vocabulary to Know:

Stray: a domestic animal found wandering without a owner

Predator: an animal that lives my hunting other animals for food

Abandon: to leave forever, to give up

Wary: cautious and careful

Rabid: Affected with rabies, an often fatal disease that can affect humans, dogs, bats, and other warm-blooded animals. Rabies is caused by a virus that attacks the brain and spinal cord and is spread by the bite of an infected animal

Venture: To put yourself at risk by doing something daring or dangerous

Scrounge: To get things from people without paying

Instinct: Behavior that is natural rather than learned

Suggested Lesson Ideas:

+Before Reading Activity: Use a Pattern Guide to help students understand why the text in the book is organized the way that it is. For example, in Ann Martin's book, she has divided the book into 4 different parts. With the students, you could discuss why it is that the author chose to divide the book this way, and what made her decide to include "parts" versus just only having chapters. This activity will help students to understand the book when they go to read it independently or even if it was read as a read aloud.

+During Reading Activity: Directed Reading is a good way to keep students focused and interested in what they are reading. This 3 part activity has students splitting their notebooks into 3 sections: one for making predictions, one for evidence found during reading to support those predictions, and another for reasons/evidence that does not support the predictions. This activity keeps students thinking ahead, while proving their predictions right or wrong, while also learning to pull information/evidence from the book itself.

+After Reading Activity: Provide the students with an opinion worksheet. An opinionnaire is a tool for eliciting attitudes about a topic. Opinionnaires can help students to design their own opinions based on what they have read and learned. This is a great post reading activity, because it has students re-visit opinions that they may have made while first reading the book. With this activity, you'll want to make it clear that there are no right and wrong answers, only opinions!

Check out this worksheet that could be used as a starter:

+Writing Activity: After reading "A Dog's Life", have students pick a part of the story that really stood out to them. After, they will use the writing bubble shown below to write how they think Squirrel felt during that time. They will be writing their own version of Squirrel's thoughts. They should think back to the book, and details about the event they have chosen to complete this assignment. After they have completed writing, their final draft will be written in the thought bubble. The thought bubble will be presented above the dog, which students can color after they've written. These are a great visual that can be hung around the room!