Noble House Blog

Katherine Paterson fostered two children at one point in her life and this experience inspired her to write the Newbery Honor Book entitled, The Great Gilly Hopkins. Did you know the main character’s name is a blending of Paterson’s favorite poet as well as a character from a book written by Tolkien? As we explore the book, students will choose a chapter from which to do a “close reading” and present their findings to the class, just as we did in Charlotte’s Web. You will be looking for the various themes of the book, figurative language, points-of-view, humor, as well as anything else of note. We will also explore William Wordswoth’s poem, “Ode” and the ways in which it mirrors the themes and events of the story. The culmination of the unit will be a project chosen by you.