Hatchet by Gary Paulsen

Hatchet by Gary Paulsen Webquest

Just How Tough Are You? Before Reading Activity #2 • In the novel Hatchet, Brian must learn to survive without any plan or formal training. Would you be able to do this? To learn if you have what it takes to be a survivor, take the Survival Quiz by clicking here: http://www.wilderness-survival.net/ • In your journal, record your results. (How did you do? Could you lead us all on a camping trip through the wilderness?) Write a paragraph in which you record the area(s) you had the most trouble with. Were you surprised by the results? Explain. Compare your score with other classmates. • Create a survival book including at least 6 important things you have learned about survival. Make sure to include a title page, table of contents, headings, subheadings, text, an index, and illustrations for each page.

I THINK, I LINK During Reading Activity #2 How would you like to meet a black bear like Brian did? How much do you know about these always beautiful and compare your chart with your partner. After you have made your predictions, turn to the next 2 slides and read about our woodland friend and see if you are right.

BLACK BEARS WHAT I THINK WHAT I FOUND OUT MY LINK TO REAL LIFE About how much does a black bear weigh when grown? This equals __________ of my friends put together. Where do black bears live? I am likely or not to meet a black bear in Watertown. Explain. What color is a black bear? Black bears remind me of What do black bears eat? A black bear will or will not eat me if hungry. Explain. I THINK, I LINK During Reading Activity #2

American Black Bear Encyclopedia ArticleEdit this articleMultimedia 1 item American Black Bear, common name for a medium-sized bear of North America. The American black bear often has a white, star-shaped mark on its chest, and its color ranges from black to brown, cinnamon, beige, and even pure white. Its habitat ranges from the Tropics of Florida to the Arctic. Female American black bears commonly weigh about 40 kg (about 90 lb); males usually weigh about 130 kg (about 290 lb), although some may weigh 300 kg (700 lb). The cubs weigh only about 0.5 kg (about 1 lb) at birth. In the northern mountains, both males and females weigh less. The American black bear has plantigrade feet (heel and sole touching the ground) and five short, curved, sharp claws on each foot for climbing trees. It is generally solitary, except during the breeding season, or in family groups of mother and young. The American black bear lives in a wide range of habitats, including forest, scrub forests of the subarctic, and near jungle. It also ranges onto the open tundra and plains along streams. A unique behavioral and physiological adaptation allows American black bears to remain dormant without eating for as long as seven months when food is scarce. When active, they are omnivorous, feeding mostly on berries, acorns, succulent herbs, fish, carrion, and insects. When food is abundant, they may eat as much as 20 kg (45 lb) of food per day and gain up to 2.5 kg (5 lb) a day in preparation for winter.

Female American black bears often do not give birth to their first young until they are five or six years old, and they usually do not have more than two cubs every second or third year. They may bear young until they are about 25 years of age. Because most American black bears do not live beyond ten years of age, and because juvenile mortality is rather high, many females barely replace themselves in the population. The cubs purr when fed and cry when hungry or cold. Adults huff and growl, roar, and chomp their teeth as warnings to other bears or to people. American black bears do not prey on humans, but sometimes they hurt or kill people in conflicts over space or food or while protecting their young. In most areas, American black bear populations are stable. Black bears are the most abundant of the species of bears. Scientific classification: The American black bear belongs to the family Ursidae in the order Carnivora. It is classified as Ursus americanus

Oh no, Brian, if it’s not one thing, it’s another! During Reading Activity #4 Just when things were finally settled, Brian encounters his biggest challenge yet—a tornado. Just how dangerous can these big storms be? Click here to find out: http://www.nssl.noaa.gov/noaastory/book.html. Now complete the “Tornadoes: So Much Energy, So Little Time” worksheet in the next slide. Use the “Where and When”, “What” and “How” sections of the text. Use the graphs and your reasoning skills, too!

“Tornadoes: So Much Energy, So Little Time” Complete this worksheet, using the site http://www.nssl.noaa.gov/noaastory/book.html. 1. Name three places in the United States where tornadoes are likely to occur. 2. During which two seasons are tornadoes least likely? 3. What time of day is most dangerous for tornadic activity? 4. Tornadoes reflect only a small amount of energy in a thunderstorm, so…what makes them so dangerous? 5. What is the biggest threat that tornadoes pose to people? 6. According to the chart, how many tornadoes occurred the year you were born? (What year was that?) 7. According to the chart, regarding tornadoes, which three months are the safest in Oklahoma? Which three are the most dangerous? 8. How would these graphs be different if they showed tordadic activity in Connecticut? 9. Click on the photo display. Which photo of damage most impresses you? Why? 10. Tornadoes are classified according to the amount of damage they cause. The scale connects wind speed and damage. How are these two related?

Everybody’s a Critic! After Reading Activity So, now that you’re finished reading Hatchet, what did you think? Write a short (8-10) sentence review of the story for other kids, your age. Include your ideas about the plot,character and theme. Finish off the review with your recommendation (a good read, or not?) Write a draft first, get my O.K., then post your ideas on the web, by clicking here:http://www.kidsbookshelf.com/formsubmitreviews.asp. Newbery Award

Hatchet by Gary Paulsen