Nate Rocks in the Classroom
Curriculum Guide
Classroom and Library Activities:
Nate Rocks is about a ten year old boy whose imagination has no limits. However, you may be surprised to learn that the Nate Rocks books are not a graphic novel. In fact, other than the cover, there are no pictures at all. As the author, I wanted the reader to experience each of Nate’s adventures the same exact way that Nathan does – through the sole use of his imagination.
I hope you will consider using Nate Rocks in your classroom, as you encourage your students’ creativity through reading.
Creative/Language Arts:
--A Classroom Collection of Stories--
· Have the children read the first few chapters of Nate Rocks.
· Have each child draw a picture to represent his or her own adventure.
· Have each child write a short story to accompany the picture.
· Compile a book made up of the students’ stories and artwork – to be titled something like: “Mrs./Mr. ________’s 3rd Grade Class Rocks the World” or even better come up with your own title: "Mrs./Mr. __________'s 3rd Grade Class Rocks the _________."
· Distribute a copy of the book to each student upon completion of reading Nate Rocks.
--A Student’s Collection of Stories--
· A variation on the above activity.
· Instead of a classroom collection, each student draws adventures and writes stories at different points while reading the novel.
· At the end of the book, each student will have their own book entitled “________ Rocks the World,” made up of his or her own stories and drawings or have the student make up their own title based on their story "__________ Rocks the __________".
· As another variation, the student could write one longer story during the course of reading Nate Rocks and draw several pictures to make up his or her own book.
--A Classroom Adventure --
· Have the children read the first few chapters of Nate Rocks.
· Provide the children with the first line of a made up adventure, by writing the sentence on the classroom blackboard.
· Have each child contribute one or more sentences to the story until an adventure is written with the help of all of the children.
· Have each child draw a picture to depict the adventure.
· Print out a copy of the classroom adventure for each child to keep upon completion of reading Nate Rocks.
Classroom Discussion Topics:
Teachers and Librarians can use Nate Rocks to initiate several discussions regarding topics important to children aged 7-12:
1. Sibling Relationships.
2. Building Self-Esteem.
3. Helping Others.
4. Friendships and Respect.
