Dragon of the Red Dawn

Dragon of the Red Dawn

by Mary Pope Osborn

Illustrated by Sal Murdocca

About the book:

Merlin is not well and he is full of sorrows. Annie and Jack must help him by discovering what an ancient Japanese poet named Basho learned about happiness. Jack and Annie explore 17^th Century Japan but must avoid Samurai and a raging fire in the capital city before they can learn the secrets that will help Merlin survive.

Pre-reading Activities:

Read the prologue and explain what kinds of adventures Jack and Annie have been on before. What does the word mythical mean? What adventures were mythical for them and which ones were from actual history? How do you know the difference?

Have you ever read a Magic Tree House book before? How does the magic in the story work? Do Jack and Annie ever get in trouble at home for their adventures far away? How do they get back in forth in time? Where would you like to go if you could visit anyplace in history?

Reading Reflections: JAPAN

Fill out the following KWL (Know, Want to Know, Learned) Chart based on the book.

What I KNOW about Japan:	What I WANT to know:	What I learned by reading Dragon of the Red Dawn:

Book-Talk

Discussion questions:

1. What do Jack and Annie need to discover as they visit ancient Japan? Who needs this information? Why? What things make you happiest?
2. Describe Edo (Tokyo) in the 17^th century. What made this a dangerous location for foreigners during this time? Why did this put Jack and Annie in a difficult position to help Merlin?
3. What did Basho teach his students? Why was poetry considered important for a samurai to learn? Would you like to study with Basho? What does Basho mean when he says, “Words can outlive their creators.”
4. Why is the dry spell frightening for the residents of Edo? How can they fight fires? Why does Basho tell Jack and Annie to stay near the river?
5. What is the most fascinating fact you learned about Japan while reading this book? What more would you like to learn about Japan and its people?
6. How do Jack and Annie use the wand of Dianthus? Why doesn’t it work at first? What rules must they follow? How does it help the people of Edo?

The Secret Path to Happiness:

Sequence: To help Merlin, Jack and Annie must discover the secret of happiness, can you put these events from the story in the sequence that they appear in the novel? Scan the book to check your answers before turning your paper in.

_____  Visit Basho’s castle

_____  They ride down the river with fishermen.

_____  Use the wand of Dianthus to help stop the fire.

_____  Teddy and Kathleen come to get Annie and Jack’s help.

_____  Jack and Annie head home with happiness tucked inside to share.

_____ Basho tells the samurai that Jack and Annie are his students, Baku and Koto

_____ They race to help put out the fire in Edo.

_____ Annie and Jack appear in the Imperial Garden

_____ Watch a sumo wrestling match.

_____  Ride the Cloud Dragon over Edo.

_____  The kids discover that eating with chopsticks is harder than it looks!

_____  Jack recites a bad poem for the samurai.

_____  The kids run away from a samurai

Answers: 9, 5, 11, 1, 13, 4, 10, 2, 7, 12, 6, 8, 3

Basho’s Best Students:

Either take a walk in a natural area or study a wildlife photograph (National Geographic magazines are ideal) and be inspired to write a haiku like Basho.

Haiku is a traditional three-line Japanese poem which consists of counted syllables: five for the first line, seven for the second, and five again for the third. It often gives a hint to the season or reflects on nature. Haiku is always created by close observation.

Great Haiku Poets:

Research and read other books written by these great Japanese poets of Japan: Basho, Buson, Issa, Izumi Shikibu, Ono No Komachi. Then, find your favorite haiku and illustrate it using a piece of poster-board. These pieces can be displayed to create an entire hall of haiku.

Understanding Master Basho:

Character Development

Jack and Annie get to know Basho a little bit at a time, just like a reader gets to know a character in a story. A reader learns about a character by what they say, how they are described, and how other characters treat them. Discuss what you learn about Basho by filling out the following web:

A View of Japan

Perspective drawing:

Sal Murdocca the illustrator for Dragon of the Red Dawn creates pictures with fascinating detail about Japan. In addition, he plays with the perspective (or view) of his topic (look on p.64 for a terrific aerial view of Basho’s home). Sketch your own scene from ancient Japan from at least two different perspectives and try to show as much detail as you can on these topics food, dress, architecture or entertainment as you can. Share your sketches with a partner and display your best.

Perspectives to explore: from the sky or ceiling, child-level, bottom up, widescreen, zoom in, landscape or portrait.

 

Novel Ideas:  Understanding Conflict

Every novel has a problem and sometimes there are more than one! In Dragon of the Red Dawn Jack and Annie face several problems that they must resolve. As you read the story take notes on the problems and the solutions. Use these to discuss the book with a partner or as a class.

	Problem	Solution
Merlin
Fire
Samurai

Blizzard of the Blue Moon

Blizzard of the Blue Moon

by Mary Pope Osborne

illustrated by Sal Murdocca

About the book:

Jack and Annie must prove once again to the greatest wizard Merlin that they can use magic wisely. This time they must travel again to a real time and a real place in history. They must use the poem that Merlin gives them and unravel the meaning to complete the quest. Somehow, they must find a unicorn in New York City in 1938 and free him from the spell he is under. Will they be able to navigate the city during a blizzard? Will they find the unicorn in time to free him before the blue moon?

Pre-Reading Activities:

Discuss with your students: How do you know if a book is a fantasy or if it is realistic fiction? What clues does the author give? Do you read these two kinds of books differently? How? How do you know if something is real or imaginary?

Give each student a plain piece of copy paper. Have them draw a picture of New York City with pencil or markers. On the back have children list everything they know about the city around their drawing. Prompt them, if necessary, with subjects like transportation, parks, people and jobs.

Discussion Guide:

1. What must Annie and Jack understand to be able to find the unicorn? How do they figure out its meaning? Is poetry always difficult to understand?
2. Why does the weather play an important part in this story? How would the story be different if it was set in the summer? How does it add to the conflict?
3. Who comes to the aide of Jack and Annie? How do they steer our young explorers in the right direction? Would you want to travel into the past in New York with just your sibling? Why or why not?
4. A nemesis is someone who works against your goal. Who is the nemesis to Jack and Annie’s goal of finding the Flower of Rome? What do they do? Who ultimately wins? Why?
5. How are Jack and Annie rewarded by Merlin? Why do you think he is testing them in such difficult ways? Do you think they have proven themselves to be wise in their use of magic? How?

Steps to the Unicorn

Sequencing Important Events:

Each step that Jack and Annie make leads them closer to the unicorn. Can you put these events from the story in the sequence that they appear in the novel? Scan the book to check your answers before turning your paper in.

_____ Take the IRT train toward Bronx Zoo

_____ Teddy & Kathleen lead Dianthus to Camelot

_____ Find the unicorn and help free him

_____ Become lost in central park

_____ Merlin gives the Wand of Dianthus to the children

_____ Ride in a taxi

_____Find Belvedere Castle and learn about the weather

_____Ride a unicorn

_____Enter the Cloisters of the Metropolitan Museum

_____ Recognize Teddy and Kathleen

4

10

7

2

9

5

3

8

6

1

Answers: 4, 9 ,7 , 2, 1, 5, 3, 7, 6, 8
Moon Study

Jack and Annie must make sure that they find the unicorn before the blue moon. But first they must know the phases of the moon. Using the definitions provided, match the moon phase to its definition. Then, draw a picture to match and help you remember.

NEW MOON                                     FULL MOON

WAXING CRESCENT                     WANING GIBBOUS

FIRST QUARTER                             THIRD QUARTER
WAXING GIBBOUS                                    WANING CRESCENT

Because the sunlit side of the moon faces away from the sun, the new moon is invisible to us on earth.

phase:____________________

As the moon travels along its orbit it appears as a crescent shape on the right hand side (in the Northern Hemisphere). As the moon reveals her face before the full moon, it is called “waxing.”

phase:____________________

Now that the moon has completed the first quarter of its orbit it will appear as a half-circle.

phase:____________________

 More than half of the sunlit side shows it is called gibbous. This is the last step before a full moon.

phase:____________________

Halfway through its orbit, the entire sunlit side now shows to earth and appears as a complete circle.

phase:____________________

Now the sunlit side of the moon turns its face away from the earth. Now the moon is “waning” toward the new moon.

phase:____________________

The moon appears as a backward capital “D” now that it has reached the third quarter of its orbit.

phase:____________________

Now just a slice, or crescent appears on the left side as we prepare for the moon cycle to begin again.

phase:____________________

Answers:

New Moon, Crescent, First Quarter, Waxing Gibbous, Full Moon, Waning Gibbous, 3^rd quarter, Waning Crescent

A Haiku Blizzard:

Jack and Annie experience New York City during a harsh blizzard. Write haiku about what they see during their visit. Then, cut out the snowflake (or trace onto wax paper first for a snowy effect), copy your best haiku inside the shape and decorate the classroom with your work. To transform the classroom environment, have students create a collage of buildings using a wide variety of papers (newsprint, construction paper, even wrapping paper) that run an entire length of a wall (or hallway). Then, add the haiku snowflakes on top of the mural.

Haiku:

A traditional three-line Japanese poem which consists of counted syllables: five for the first line, seven for the second, and five again for the third. Often gives a hint to the season or reflects on nature.

 

THEN & NOW

Fill out the following chart as you read BLIZZARD OF THE BLUE MOON.

NEW YORK CITY

	THEN (1938)	NOW (20__)
Transportation
Prices
Clothing
Jobs and opportunity

Brochure:

Create a brochure with facts about New York City. You may use the ones that Jack reads aloud in the novel but you must also research at least five new facts as well. You can create a pamphlet on any of these topics from the book:  Museums, History of New York City, Parks, City Transportation, or The Rockefellers. Be sure to illustrate your work!