Fictional Texts in the Classroom: Adventure

Pertains to an exciting or unusual experience with an uncertain outcome
Dominated by action
Involve danger, risk, and excitement
The action is fast-paced
Adventure stories are sometimes set in exotic or distant places
Events in an adventure story are more remarkable and extraordinary than in everyday life
The protagonist in adventure stories has traditionally been male, but this is changing
The best stories involve the adventures that change the hero

Adventure books are written in many different subject areas
This gives teachers the opportunity to implement this genre into different content areas
Adventure books also lead nicely into some very productive writing activities for students
Students often have some strong emotions attached to these stories so they can write reflective writing exercises about it
The fact that these books are often fast-paced makes them very attractive to students.
It is important to have a handful of these books in the classroom library and to ensure that the adventure books have a wide range of topics

Stone Fox by John Reynolds Gardiner

Reference Information

Grade Level

Themes

Qualities of Writing

The language that the author uses is very engaging yet simple and easy to read
The book is intense and fast paced
There are also some pictures in the text that helps the reader visualize the characters
The themes of the book are very relate-able and thus pull the reader even deeper emotionally
The length of the text is not too overwhelming so readers stay very engaged through the whole book

Difficult Components of the Text

There are quite a few tier 3 words throughout the text that might need some brief instruction

Students may have a hard time relating to the different events that take place (like dog sledding)

Hatchet by Gary Paulsen

Reference Information:

Grade Level:

Themes:

Qualities of Writing

The way the author describes the necessities of survival is intriguing especially when you consider that he actually lived the details.
The thrill at the end will keep students engaged from the first page to the last
The author describes the sicknesses of the character and the change in the character's physical features in great detail

Difficulties in the Text

The theme of divorce, remarriage, and blended families might be difficult for students to read if they have recently gone through those family concepts. It is important to know what students are going through outside of school
It is also important to make sure that the book is not too graphic for students and to think about the cultural aspects of the book.