The Roses in My Carpets by Rukhsana Khan
Knowledge:
1. What two words on the first page let you know that the bombs and airplanes are not flying now.
2. In what countries could this story be true?
Comprehension:
1. Describe in your own words where the boy lives with his mother and sister.
2. Why does the boy say that washing his face is “a useless habit.”
3. What does he mean when he says, “I will pull my sash a little tighter.”?
Application:
1. How can you tell how the boy felt about his father?
2. In what ways does the boy show he cares for his sister? How can you show you care for your siblings?
Analysis:
1. How would this story be different if told through his sister’s eyes?
2. Compare and contrast your life to that of the boy. How are you similar? How are you different?
Synthesis:
1. The boy says his father would never have taken money from a sponsor. The boy does, would you in these circumstances?
2. Imagine you had to work to support your family, what job would you be interested in learning about? Why?
Evaluation:
1. Decide what happens next in the story after the book ends.
2. What is the best description in the story? Why did you choose that particular sentence?
Multiple Intelligence Projects
for The Roses in My Carpets by Rukhsana Khan
Verbal/ Linguistic:
Write a “found poem” based off of the text in the book. Choose a particularly vivid scene and pair down the words to their most basic elements. Then experiment with line breaks for effect. Be sure to write Rukhsana Khan as the author, and the full title but list yourself as person who “found” the poem within the text.
Logical/ Mathematical:
Using a box, create a diorama of one of the scenes in the book. You can use any media that you wish.
Visual Spatial:
Pretend you are a visual artist. Cut out the shape of a pallet (don’t forget that little donut hole in the corner) and choose a pallet of colors you would use to tell this story.
[ Teachers: this is particularly effective if you at first don’t let them see the illustrations]
Body/Kinesthetic:
Act out the scene where the boy gets called to the hospital because of Maha’s accident. Don’t use the book as a script, just stay true to the story.
Musical/ Rhythmic:
Find and listen to some traditional Pakistani music. Describe what it sounds like to you and what instruments you think are being used.
Interpersonal:
On slips of paper write the major events of the story: bomb dream, learning carpets, school, accident, hospital, etc. Pick one out and try to-without saying a word, or even using gestures, have your partner guess which scene by “reading” your facial expressions.
