|
Framed!
Last updated Sunday, January 31, 2021
Author: James Ponti
Date of Publication: 2016
ISBN: 1481436309
Grade Level: 5th (GLCs: Click here for grade level guidelines.)
Date(s) Used: Jan. 2021
Synopsis:
So you’re only halfway through your homework and the Director of the FBI keeps texting you for help…What do you do? Save your grade? Or save the country? If you’re Florian Bates, you figure out a way to do both.
Florian is twelve years old and has just moved to Washington. He’s learning his way around using TOAST, which stands for the Theory of All Small Things. It’s a technique he invented to solve life’s little mysteries such as: where to sit on the on the first day of school, or which Chinese restaurant has the best eggrolls.
But when he teaches it to his new friend Margaret, they uncover a mystery that isn’t little. In fact, it’s HUGE, and it involves the National Gallery, the FBI, and a notorious crime syndicate known as EEL.
Can Florian decipher the clues and finish his homework in time to help the FBI solve the case?
| Note to readers: |
| • |
Part 1 of 3 (Framed!, Vanished!, and Trapped!) of the mystery series.
Impressionist artists mentioned: Van Gogh, Paul Gaugin, Edgar Degas, Pablo Picasso, Claude Monet.
|
| Discussion topics for before reading: |
| • |
Take turns talking about the last museum visited and what you enjoyed most. Where was the museum located? What artists were featured? What did you like/dislike?
|
| • |
Have you ever noticed something unusual that no one else saw? How did your feelings/intuition and available context clues influence your behavior at the time?
Vocabulary
|
| • |
rapport (p. 19) - a friendly relationship with communication and understanding
|
| • |
semiconscious (p. 58) - partially conscious, somewhat awake/able to understand
|
| • |
surreal (p. 97) - very strange or unusual, like a dream
|
| • |
bellowed (p. 130) - shouted in a loud, deep voice
|
| • |
syndicate (p. 158) - a group of people involved in organized crime
|
| Discussion topics for during/after reading: |
| • |
Florian has been described as a "covert asset" (p.5). What do you think this means?
|
| • |
Was there a time where you missed something important because you weren't paying attention? What happened and what could you have done differently?
|
| • |
Ask students if they think it's risky to act on a hunch versus certainty. What consequences are there for those involved in each situation?
|
| Craft ideas: |
| • |
Create a secret code and write a short message using the "pigpen method" then share your special secret message with a friend or family member. A gumshoe favorite!
|
| • |
Curate a 3-item museum brochure that features one's most treasured possessions that you'd put in a museum; have each panel feature a drawing and description of the item.
|
| • |
Check our craft ideas on Pinterest!
https://www.pinterest.com/readingtokids/january-2021-mysteries-new-adventures/
|
| Special activities: |
| • |
Imagine you're giving a museum tour. What does the museum specialize in? What information are you expert in that you can showcase to your "patrons"?
|
| • |
Have students close their eyes and guess how many people are in the video call. Explain how "gamifying" observational skills can improve recollection like with TOAST.
|
*Note: These craft ideas are just suggestions.
You can use them, but you don't have to use them.
You can expand upon them, or add your own twist.
Remember, though, that the focus of your time should
not be on the development and execution of a craft;
the focus should be on the read-aloud and the
enjoyment of the book!
|
