Because of Winn-Dixie (Kate DiCamillo) Novel Study/Literature Circle (Flex)

"One summer’s day, ten-year-old India Opal Buloni goes down to the local supermarket for some groceries – and comes home with a dog. But Winn-Dixie is no ordinary dog. It’s because of Winn-Dixie that Opal begins to make friends. And it’s because of Winn-Dixie that she finally dares to ask her father about her mother, who left when Opal was three. In fact, as Opal admits, just about everything that happens that summer is because of Winn-Dixie. Featuring a new cover illustration by E. B. Lewis." (Amazon)

Common Sense Media Review:  https://www.commonsensemedia.org/book-reviews/because-of-winn-dixie

** As this is a flexible schedule class, there will be no live meetings.
**Google Classroom will be used for our assignments and communication.
**There will be a 10 - 15 minute video each week that will discuss the week's content and expectations.
**Assignments will be provided on Mondays each week.
**Reading assignments will need to be completed by Thursdays in order to be fully prepared for the discussion questions.
**Student interaction and responses to discussion board questions will be the heart of the course. Initial responses should be completed on Thursdays of each week. There will normally be three discussion questions that will be derived from a variety of topics (pre-reaading, content questions, character study, literary elements, literary devices, cross-curricular study, etc.) Students should respond to other students' initial responses (at least two) by Friday of each week. The teacher will also participate in the discussions.
**Fluency practice sheets will be provided each week so that students can increase their reading speed. Students will let the teacher know his or her best fluency score by Sunday of each week. This should be sent privately to me in the classroom.
**Vocabulary practice will be provided through the Quizlet site. Students will be given weekly vocabulary lists and the ability to practice through games and self-quizzing through the linked site. No password will be needed. Students should share three vocabulary words of his or her choice by using them each in a separate sentence. This should be turned in to the teacher by Sunday of each week in the classroom.
**The final week will focus on a culminating project. Student will have approximately eight activity options from which to choose to create a final product for the study, and these options will be presented in the classroom during the second week. This will allow plenty of time for the students to determine how they would most like to express the reading experience. These will be due by Thursday of the final week, and will be presented in the classroom using whatever medium is appropriate (documents or videos/or both). Students will be sure to respond to other students' projects by Saturday. 


Week 1:  Chapters 1 - 4
Week 2:  Chapters 5 - 9
Week 3:  Chapters 10 - 13
Week 4:  Chapters 14 - 18
Week 5:  Chapters 19 - 23
Week 6:  Chapters 24 - 26
Week 7:  Culminating Project