The book loser details the growth of donald zinkoff, an autistic boy. Teachers could place students in small groups to work on this project to promote discussion of the story and what message the group is trying to send through their poster. Donald faces the familiar challenges of elementaryaged children disagreeable teachers, peer pressure, social conformity, and. Loser is an excellent novel, which sensitively deals with the human spirit and the importance of failure. Loser, by jerry spinelli, is one of my favorite fiction novels. I hope your students love this quiz and the book loser as well this is my 1st set and i have been teaching for 2 years in 5th grade. Other kids have their own word to describe him, but zinkoff is too busy to hear it. When zinkoff enters the first grade, his sloppiness and excessive enthusiasm. It could be that jerry spinelli wrote this story to explore the idea of labels and the reasons why kids will cruelly give them to others that they dont understand. It details the growth of donald zinkoff, who is branded a loser by his classmates due to his clumsiness, poor performance in school and athletics, and sometimes clueless enthusiasm.
It is especially recommended for students struggling with acceptance among their peers, or who bear up under various negative influences. Free loser worksheets and literature unit for teachers. He is, in the callous summation of his classmates, a loser. What is the plot of the book loser bby jerry spineli.
To put it shortly euron is one of the most evil, terrifying, and mysterious men in the entire asoiaf book series. Spinelli follows him from early childhood through middle school. Loser study guide contains a biography of jerry spinelli, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and. Bernie is a sad sack, a schmuck and a loser, so he does his job, and does it well, by hanging around those players with hot streaks and just being himself. A book report acts not to retell the story but to discuss some of the important elements of the story such as character, themes and plot. Zinkoffs classmates call him a loser, but he does not feel that he is one. My 5th graders absolutely loved this book when we read it at the beginning of the year, and we have referred to it often as a mentor text for descriptive writing, small moments, and characters in stories. Click here to download jerrys ultimate 12step guide. It contains 16 pages of activities 36 total pages including the answer key, assessments, and scoring rubrics. Challenge students comprehension of the novel with a variety of question styles and a final quiz.
Until the 4th gradewhen his teacher seats him in the first row. With the encouragement of his family, he learns to approach life with a positive spirit and to enjoy all that it has to offer. Jerry spinellis loser by new learning publishing tpt. A simple rubric is included for grading the book summary. A staple of any romance novel is that the plot should contain a significant obstacle before the heroine and her man can end up together.
Jerry spinellis novel, loser, chronicles the childhood of donald zinkoff. The literature study concludes with an organized and detailed book summary. The novel follows the protagonist, donald zinkoff, through his early life. Loser by jerry spinelli novel guide is a great addition when you read loser with your class. Loser is a coming of age young adult novel first published in 2002 by american author jerry spinelli. He is perhaps best known for the barry loser series of books spellchecked by jim. The setting of the book loser by jerry spinelle takes place in a small brick and hoagie town asked in jerry spinelli.
Story time just got better with prime book box, a subscription that delivers. Language arts book summary maybe a little kid can get away with wearing a giraffe hat, yelling yahoo. From renowned newberywinning author jerry spinelli comes a powerful story about how not fitting in just might lead to an incredible life. Loser is a story of an awkward, kind, emotional boy who your students are. Another old fashioned measure he has implemented is to employ bernie lootz as a cooler. How would a bunch of people dropped into ancient r. Check out these favorite books for 3rd graders, picked by our panel of childrens book experts to enthrall, challenge, and delight your child. Kim smith graduated with a first class degree in advertising, graphic design and illustration in 1997. But zinkoff also raises his hand with all the wrong answers, trips over his own feet, and falls down with laughter over a word like jabip. Donald has always dreamed of becoming a mailman like his father and finally in second grade he gets his chance to.
Like when donald zinkoff raises his hand with all the wrong answers, but he still raises his hand not giving up. The loser is a novel by thomas bernhard, originally published in german in 1983. Free loser study unit worksheets for teachers to print. Inventive kids with creative ideas to cure boredom and update old rules. Jerry spinelli booklist jerry spinelli message board. The loser community note includes chapterbychapter summary and analysis, character list, theme list, historical context, author biography and quizzes written by community members like you. Three bffs set out to have the best summer ever in the fourth book in this addictive series told entirely in text. Plot is the sequence of events that makes up your story. If you struggle with plot, heres how to think about it. This classic book is perfect for fans of gordon korman and carl hiaasen. How to steal a plot for your book and get away with it.
His giraffe hat, his love for school, hisuncontrollable giggles, his belief that he runs so fast. It could be that jerry spinelli wrote this story to explore the idea of labels. Fortunately, zinkoff is so wrapped up in the amazing world around him that his good. The graveyard book by neil gaiman is another great example. See also conflict, master plots, plot threads, the seven basic plots, and propps functions of folktales. This middle grade novel is an excellent choice for tween readers in grades 5 to 6, especially during homeschooling. Loser themes jerry spinelli this study guide consists of approximately 38 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of loser. Its an award winning, inventive and enjoyable book, and the plot is ripped right out of the jungle book gaiman has more or less said so himself. The main plot of the story is that donald zinkoff has horrible handwriting, is clumsy, and is a loser to everyone else. Hewants to sit in that first seat in class, and yet his last namedooms him to the last seat in the last row. Hes part of the scenery, like the parked cars and the green plastic. See more ideas about 5th grade reading, authors purpose and teaching.
Donald zinkoff has always been the nerd of the school. This is a reading comprehension activity guide and answer key for loser by jerry spinelli. Heres some ideas for stories id like to write at some point. Future ratboy and the attack of the killer robot grannies. See more ideas about teaching reading, 4th grade reading and 3rd grade reading. With a name like loser, i really expected to hate this book and feel sorry for the main character throughout the entire story. The plot was recognizable if you looked for it, but it didnt read like plagiarism, rather a respectful homage. Once again, newbery medalwinning author jerry spinelli uses great wit and humor to create the unique story of zinkoff as he travels from first through sixth grades. Hes the kid who wears the threefoottall giraffe hat on his first day of school. The story is written with an omniscient narrator, and even though the plot could focus on the kids that teased zinkoff, it focuses on zinkoffs positive attitudes despite his peers, instead. Browse over educational resources created by wise guys in the official teachers pay teachers store. Loser by jerry spinelli is just another of his books that inspire kids. It is also, and more importantly, the guideline that helps the author make sure he doesnt get lost on all of the ideas and.
Comprehension by chapter, vocabulary challenges, creative reading response activities and projects, tests, and much more. Classroom complete press 0 8 0 summary students deal with the concept of the human spirit and the importance of failure. Identifying the key conflict or conflicts in your novel is key to ensuring that you keep your focus on that conflict throughout the book, as well as maintain enough narrative tension. Loser is a tender story about donald zinkoss, a young character who demonstrates great selfacceptance and who is not afraid to fail. Print out copies of the loser literature circle questions printable for. When teachers ask students to write book reports, they want the readers to think about what they have written. But as donald zinkoff gets older, the other kids realize what a loser he really is. A good plot is all about organizing ideas in a way that is appealing to the reader. Loser is a touching book about the human spirit, the importance of failure, and how any name can someday be replaced with hero. Refine your story idea and make sure there is enough conflict to drive your story use now novel to structure and develop story ideas and get feedback now. The first of three notebooks belonging to barry loserperfect for reluctant readers. Create a poster for your movie that illustrates a scene that would show what the movie is about. Loser, by jerry spinelli, follows the life throughout grade school of a boy named donald zinkoff, who has a hard time achieving success in anything he does, yet. The one who uses all the cookie dough to bake one giant.
What is the theme of loser by jerry spinelli answers. Teachers could place students in small groups to work on this project to promote discussion of the story and what message the group is trying to send through. The novel does not take place at the time of the events recounted, but at the time its narrator recalls them. A novel study for loser, by jerry spinelli, containing 30 journal prompts and 15 quizzes. This book is wonderful, my students love zinkoff and hector binns. Loser novel study book study, book club books, novels. From bestselling and awardwinning author andrew clements, a quirky, imaginative tale about creative thought and the power of words that will have readers inventing their own words.
How to write a plot for a book report pen and the pad. Jim smith is the keelest kids book author in the whole wide world amen. Imagine who you would cast in the movie version of loser. From renowned newberywinning author jerry spinelli comes an incredible story about how not fitting in might just lead to an incredible life. How is the problem solved in the story loser by jerry spinelli. This study guide consists of approximately 38 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of loser. Loser by jerry spinelli summary the book loser details the growth of donald zinkoff, an autistic boy. From renowned newberywinning author jerry spinelli comes a powerful story. His idea is to initially ignore plot altogether, no matter whether you write work that is more. Ive never minded that my names barry loser because my coolness has always cancelled it out, but ever since darren darrenofski joined school with his horrible little crocodile face hes been completely ruining my life about it. Just like other kids, zinkoff rides his bike, hopes for snow days, and wants to be like his dad when he grows up. A great book for grades rules, by cynthia lord love this book. To keep me turning the pages of your book, you need a plot that grabs me by the throat and keeps me with you to the end.