Gloria Whelan Author Study

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Gloria Whelan Author Study
Lisa Rutledge OU LIS 5183 July 22, 2008
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Gloria Whelans Early Years

• Born in Detroit on November 23, 1923
• When sick, took solace in reading
• Dictated stories to babysitter
• Wrote poetry in elementary school
• Edited her high school newspaper

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Gloria Whelan, the Writer

• Moved to the woods of Northern Michigan in 1972
• Wilderness settings in many of her books
• First book, A Clearing in the Forest, published
  when she was 55 years old
• Inspired by news stories
• If theres something that you really want to do
  and cant, write a story about it.

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Gloria Whelan, at Work and Play
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• Death of a parent
• Disabilities
• Nature
• Adult/Child Relationship
• Dynamic Female Protagonist
• Activity Research products designed for people
  with disabilities.

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• Keeping a Secret Journal
• Being True to Yourself
• Respecting Nature
• Conflict with Parent
• Poverty

Activity Students can keep their own journals,
where they record secret thoughts.
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• Vietnamese Culture
• Oppression by the Government
• Relocation
• Activity Because ancestry is portrayed as an
  important aspect of Vietnamese culture, students
  can respond to the text by researching their
  ancestry and developing a family tree.

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• Being orphaned
• Racism
• Illness
• Americanization of Native Americans
• Struggle to do the right thing

• Activity Students make a list of important
  aspects of their culture that they would want to
  preserve if they were forced to move.

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• Being Orphaned
• Older adult/child relationship
• Struggle to do the right thing regardless of the
  consequences

• Activity Students can increase their
  understanding of the setting of the book, British
  East Africa, by researching the area that is now
  known as Kenya.

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• Death of a Parent
• Poverty
• Racism
• Forgiveness
• Disobeying a racist parent
• Activity Research Buffalo Bill Cody and his
  Wild West Show and/or the Battle of Little Big
  Horn and Sitting Bull.

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• Native Americans (Potawatomi)
• Consequences of Disobedience
• Relocation of Native Americans
• Friendship/Responsibility
• Activity Students can compare the relationship
  of the characters in the story and write the
  response journal regarding this topic, or create
  their own story about their friends and family.

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• Grandparent/Child Relationship
• City Life vs. Country Life
• Friendship
• The Great Depression
• Holocaust
• Activity Take students on a field trip to the
  country and like Elsa, write a poem or sketch a
  picture, in response to nature.

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Genre Study Historical Fiction
4.1a Literature Recognize characteristics of
literary genres and forms, (e.g., contemporary
realistic fiction, historical fiction,
nonfiction, modern fantasy, poetry, drama, and
traditional stories such as fairy tales, fables,
myths, and legends)
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Three Aspects to Emphasize With Children

• Dynamic Female Protagonists
• Distinct Parental Figures
• Learning to Understand Others

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One Aspect to Emphasize with Parents
The set represents different examples of historic
fiction that would appeal mainly to female
readers.