My Great Big Book Blog: The Turtle of Oman

Written by Naomi Shihab Nye and illustrated by Betsy Peterschmidt

Published by Greenwillow Books

Reading level: ages 8-10, Lexile measure 700L

Suggested delivery: read aloud or independent read
Genre: Fiction

Exquisite ~ Nature loving ~ Gentle ~ Adventurous ~ Intelligent

Summary:

In this novel, a young boy, Aref from Oman is moving with his family all the way across the ocean to Michigan. Aref does not want to leave the life that he has always known, and move to a new place. Aref loves so much about Oman, including his friends, his school and of course his grandfather. For several days Aref refuses to pack his suitcase, and continues to tell his mother that he does not want to move. So, to pass the time Aref and his grandfather, Sidi go on fabulous adventures, including a visit to the camp of a thousand stars that sits deep in the desert. This novel is one which explores the many different themes of moving, family and nature, while having an attention grabbing story with each turn of the page.

Vocabulary to Know:

Muscat: a city in Oman

Cold-blooded: pertaining to animals such as fish and reptiles, whose blood temperature ranges from the freezing point upward

Oasis: a small fertile or green area in a desert region, usually having a spring or a well

Turban: a man's headdress consisting of a long cloth made of silk, linen or cotton, worn directly around the head

Sandstorm: a windstorm, especially in a desert, the blows along great clouds of sand

Suggested Lesson Ideas:

+Before Reading Activity: An Anticipation Guide can be a useful technique to use with students. Anticipations Guides can relate to main ideas, setting, purpose of the story, and objective questions. Provide students with an anticipation guide in order to prepare them for the reading whether it be an independent read or a read aloud. Students will be able to organize their ideas and thought about the story they're about to read.
+During Reading Activity: Generative Reading is an activity that really gets the students involved! It allows students to be independent readers. They can read chapters in the book and then you an have them come up with questions (about 5 or so) to discuss with the rest of the class. As a teacher, you can model what should be done before sending them on their own. Students love having a sense of independence and this is a great way to do so.
+After Reading Activity: Found Poems are so creative! Found Poetry is a type of poetry where you take words, phrases and sometimes whole passages from other sources and reframe them as poetry but making changes in the spacing and lines, or by adding and deleting some of the text to create new meaning. "The Turtle of Oman" is just a thoughtful book that would be great for an activity like this one. Students will have the chance to be creative, while also using what they have learned from the book to create a poem of their own.
+Writing Activity: After reading "The Turtle of Oman" have students write about how they would feel if they have to travel, and move all the way across the world to a new place. Have them write about what they would feel, would they be scared or excited and why? Students can relate to the main character and his feelings. Students can write in their writing journals for this assignment.