Flat Stanley Takes on the World

1. Students will read the book Flat Stanley in small groups during literature circle time.

2. While reading, students should keep a literature response journal and respond to the events in the story as they relate to the student. Possible responses could include:

• I really like/dislike this idea because...
• This character reminds me of ----------, because...
• This character reminds me of me because...
• This character is like (name of the character) in
Flat Stanley because...
• I think this setting is important because...
• This scene reminds me of a similar scene in (title
of book) because...

3. Students will create their own "Flat Stanley" and write a story in Flat Stanley's Journal about how he became flat.

4. The students will be assigned a digital camera and will practice using the camera at school. The teacher should provide a demonstration lesson on how to use and care for the camera. The students and parents will sign a responsibility contract so the students understand their responsibility in caring for the equipment.

5. Students will spend a week taking photographs of Stanley's adventures throughout the day at school, home, church, sporting events, etc. The students will also journal about Stanley's day through his eyes.

6. Students will spend several days in the computer lab creating a slideshow presentation of their own Flat Stanley's adventures. The students will learn to insert their photos from the digital camera into the presentation.

7. Students will share their slideshow presentations with the class on an LCD projector.

8. The teachers will make contacts with school in other parts of the world through the Flat Stanley website. Each student will send their Flat Stanley and camera to a school in another part of the world. The teachers at those schools will show the slideshow presentations created by the students at MXR, to share about the American way of life and about life in Alabama.

9. In return, the students and teachers in the other countries will document Stanley's adventures on his trip and will create a presentation for the students at MXR, to help our students understand the way of life and culture in other countries.

10. For a finale, parents and community leaders will be invited to a Flat Stanley Night, where the students will set up their slideshow presentations in various classrooms to share.