Book Bag Activities for
Charlotte's Web

• White, E.B. Charlotte’s Web

Rationale:

• This would be a good book to read with 2^nd to 4^th graders because it is a well written story that sends a good message. Children will be interested in this book and there are many teaching opportunities to go along with it.

Information About The Author:

• Elwyn Brooks White was born in Mount Vernon, New York, as the son of a prosperous piano manufacturer. After service as an Army private in 1918, he entered Cornell University and graduated in 1921. White worked in some miscellaneous jobs, such as reporter for United Press, American Legion News Service, and the Seattle Times. In 1924 he returned to New York. He worked as a production assistant and advertising copywriter before joining the newly established New Yorker. There he met his wife, Katherine Sergeant Angell, who was the magazine's literary editor. They married in 1929. For 11 years he wrote for the magazine editorial essays and contributed verse and other pieces. Among the writers with whom White and his wife become friends at the New Yorker were Dorothy Parker, Robert Benchley, James Thurber, and Stephen Leacock.
• In 1959 White published a standard style manual for writing, THE ELEMENTS OF STYLE, which become a mainstay of high-school and college English courses in the U.S. Between writing columns, White also published children's books. STUART LITTLE (1945) depicted an independent and adventurous child, the size of mouse, who is born into a human family. After various adventures Stuart goes in search of a bird whose life he had previously saved. CHARLOTTE'S WEB (1952) was a story of the friendship between a young pig and the spider, who craftily saves him from the butcher's knife through the message she weaves in her web - only to die alone. In THE TRUMPET OF THE SWAN (1970) a mute swan learns to trumpet and becomes a celebrity. In these works White explored such themes as salvation, friendship, and rural living and they have become for many young readers unforgettable guides into the world of fiction.
• E.B. White died of Alzheimer disease on October 1, 1985 in North Brooklin, Maine. He was awarded the gold medal for essays and criticism of the National Institute of Arts and Letters, and a Pulitzer Prize special citation in 1978. He held honorary degrees from seven American colleges and universities and was a member of the American Academy.
• For further reading: E. B. White: The Emergence of an Essayist by Robert L., Jr. Root (1999); E.B. White: The Children's Books by Lucien L. Agosta (1995); E.B. White The Elements of a Writer by Janice Tingum (1995); Critical Essays on E.B. White, ed. by R.L. Root (1994); E.B. White: Some Writer! by Beverly Gherman (1992); E.B. White: A Biography by S. Elledge (1984); Hugging the Shore by J. Updike (1983); E.B. White by E. Sampson (1974)

Questions to use with the story:

• Before Reading– Does anyone have a pet? Has anyone ever been to a farm or lived on a farm? From the title of the book, what do you think it is about?
• During Reading– What do you think is going to happen in the next chapter? What do you think is going to happen to Wilbur? What do you think is going to happen to Charlotte?
• After Reading– What did you think about the book? Were your predictions of what this book was about correct? Do you like the ending? Why or why not? What would you have done differently if you had written this book?

Activities to use with the story:

• Before Reading:
  • Make a farm on a wall in the classroom. If you want to get this done quickly, already have the animal cut-outs and barn drawn and ready to hang up. (If you’re doing this on a bulletin board or a wall, hang up some paper as the background that can be written on later.) If you’re not in a hurry to get this done, you could have the students make the animals they know live on farms, or the animals they think they may read about in the book. Hang these up to get the students interested in reading the book.
  • Research farms. Talk about the different kinds of farms and what they produce and why farms are important to us. Break the class into small groups and have them find information on different types of farms and have each group teach the class.
  • Make a Charlotte’s Web bulletin board. Hang up information about the book, the author, other books the author has written, recommendations from previous students who have read the book.
• During Reading:
  • Keep a journal. Have students keep a journal as they read. It should average about one entry per chapter. Have students write at home and at school. Sometimes it may be necessary to give the students an idea to write about. This journal does not have to stick to writing only! Students may wish to draw, make collages, etc. to portray feelings and ideas of the book.
  • WOW (Writing On the Wall). This is where the paper as the farm background comes in. As the class reads the book, let students write on the designated farm area. They may wish to write about things they’ve noticed about the book, about the different characters in the book, what they think will happen next, etc.
  • Paired Reading. Have students read with a partner.
  • Whole class reads the book. If possible, find a small pig beanie baby (or something along the same lines) take turns tossing the pig around and the person who gets it gets to read then pass it along to another class member.
• After Reading:
  • Watch the movie Charlotte’s Web. Have students discuss the differences between the movie and the book.
  • Act out part of the book. Split the class into pairs or small groups and have the students pick part of the book to act out for the class.
  • Make a song. As a class, write a song about the book and make or bring in instruments to use while singing the song.
  • Have students write recommendations for the next class who reads this book.
  • Make puppets. Give students materials to make puppets that would go along with the book. (They may wish to use these and create a puppet show instead of acting out a part in activity #2).
  • Learn about pigs and spiders. If anyone has a pet pig or spider allow them to bring the animals in to show the class.
  • Spider webs. Learn about different kinds of spider webs and show the students how to make a homemade spider web and hang them up around the classroom.

Props:

• A puppet or stuffed animal pig
• Different puppets of stuffed animals that could be found on a farm.
• Puppet cut-outs of farm animals that students could take home to make for themselves.
• A spider
• Spider webs
• Directions for students to make a spider web.

Bibliography of other related books:

• Stuart Little by E.B. White
• Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls
• Babe the Gallant Pig by Dick King
• Animal Farm by George Orwell

Assessment:

• Knowledge-- Where does the main part of the story take place?
• Comprehension-- How and why did Charlotte help Wilbur?
• Application-- How would you have tried to help Wilbur?
• Analysis-- Determine the role each farm animal plays in the book.
• Synthesis-- How would you have ended the book? Write your own ending.
• Evaluation-- Which characters do you best relate to and why?