THE DIARY OF A KILLER CAT

From cba80d78f46ea7541c37efd54262ab1c0dff67e9 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: ivan Date: Mon, 11 Aug 2008 07:45:07 +0000 Subject: remove files committed accidentally --- DiaryofaKillerCat.html | 236 ------------------------------------------------- 1 file changed, 236 deletions(-) delete mode 100644 DiaryofaKillerCat.html (limited to 'DiaryofaKillerCat.html') diff --git a/DiaryofaKillerCat.html b/DiaryofaKillerCat.html deleted file mode 100644 index eb0507e..0000000 --- a/DiaryofaKillerCat.html +++ /dev/null @@ -1,236 +0,0 @@ - - - - - THE DIARY OF A KILLER CAT - - - - - - - - -

-THE DIARY OF A -KILLER CAT

-ANNE FINE

-
-

-LOUISIANA YOUNG -READERS’ CHOICE NOMINEE 2009

-GRADES 3-5

Submitted -by Samantha Klein, Graduate Student, Louisiana State University, -Baton Rouge, LA

The -Diary of a Killer Cat -by Anne Fine. Illustrated by Steve Cox. New York: Farrar, Straus and -Giroux, 1994.

ANNOTATION: -This humorous chapter book is told from the point of view of a cat -named Tuffy. His human family gets upset after he brings a dead bird -and a dead mouse in the house, but they really -go “mental” when he next brings in the neighbor’s -beloved rabbit Thumper…dead, of course.

CLASSROOM -CONNECTIONS

Explore -Points of View: - -

Tuffy -is the narrator of this book; we see the events that occur in the -story from his point of view. What makes it so funny is that Tuffy is -a cat, so he looks at things in a different way than people do. He -thinks his people are being ridiculous for being so upset with him -for killing a bird when that is normal behavior for a cat. Students -can do a creative writing exercise that will help them understand -what first-person narration is. Ask children to write a story—it -can be in diary form as in The -Diary of a Killer Cat—from -the point of view of an animal. The animal can be their own pet, an -insect, a zoo animal, farm animal, or wild animal. The following site -provides a lesson for further exploration of point of view: -http://teachers.net/lessons/posts/414.html. -It helps children learn to distinguish between first and third person -points of view. The stories presented are The -Three Little Pigs -(traditionally told), The -True Story of the Three Little Pigs -by Jon Scieszka, and The -Giver -by Lois Lowry. The -Giver -is probably too advanced for our age group, but other titles can be -substituted: e.g. Bunnicula: -A Rabbit Tale of Mystery -by Deborah Howe and James Howe (or The -Vampire Bunny, -the easy reader version of -Bunnicula), -Sheep -by -Valerie Hobbs, and A -Room with a Zoo -by Jules Feiffer.

Write -a Book Review:

Have -the students write a short book review of The -Diary of a Killer Cat. -They could share the following: an explanation of what the story is -about; whether they liked it or not and why; a character description -of Tuffy. They could rate the book with stars, a five star review -being the best. That is what children did for the Web site of the Old -Hutton C of E Primary School, located in the town of Kendal, Cumbria, -in the U.K. Click the following link to see student reviews of Fine’s -books, including a few of The -Diary of a Killer Cat: -http://www.oldhutton.cumbria.sch.uk/learning/literacy/bookreviews/f.html.

“Is -That How Cats Really Are?”

This -lesson about cats comes from the ASPCA Web site: -http://www.aspca.org/site/DocServer/Is_That_How_Cats_Really_Are.pdf?docID=4250. -It asks children to brainstorm and research characteristics of real -cats. They then can compare these characteristics to portrayals of -fictional cats. A handout is provided to help them remember famous -fictional cats, like Tigger from Winnie the Pooh (yes, both domestic -and wild cats can be represented). A series of discussion questions -round out the lesson; they try to get children to think of “basic -cat care needs.” Tuffy can be brought into the discussion. In -what ways does Tuffy exhibit characteristics of real cats? How is he -not like a real cat? Does Tuffy show affection toward Ellie? How do -real cats show affection ?

Natural -History Museum of Los Angelos County: “Cats! Wild to Mild”

http://www.nhm.org/cats/home.html. -“Cats! Wild to Mild” is a traveling exhibit, but the Web -site also provides in-depth information about cats of all types, -organized in a clear fashion. On the left side of the page, click on -“Teacher Curriculum” to see a 31-page “Curriculum -Guide” that can be printed out. It includes many activities to -engage students in the lesson.

Draw -a Cartoon Animal

One -of the funny things about this book is Steve Cox’s cartoon -illustrations. Discuss how his illustrations of Tuffy correspond with -Tuffy’s voice in telling the tale. What kind of expression does -Tuffy’s face show? Have children create their own cartoon -animal character. Show children “Chunky Monkey’s Cartoon -Lessons” on Pauline Camanor’s Chunky Money Web site: -http://www.chunkymonkey.com/howto/drawinglessons.htm. -She gives step-by-step directions for drawing monkeys, cats, fish, -koalas, poodles, plus more! Books from the 1-2-3 -Draw -series will be especially of interest to kids interested in cartoon -drawing. Titles include: 1-2-3 -Draw Cartoon Animals, -1-2-3 -Draw Cartoon Wildlife, -and 1-2-3 -Draw Pets and Farm Animals. -The Web site for these books, produced by Peel Productions, provides -a sampling of drawing instructions online: -http://drawbooks.com/123_draw_series/index.html. -Click on the individual titles. -

WEB -SITES

Anne -Fine: Official Web Site

http://www.annefine.co.uk/index.html. -The attractive Web site of the British author of The -Diary of a Killer Cat would -be nice to show to children. Her books are listed according to -reading level; short summaries and cover images are presented along -with each title. Good news to kids who loved reading The -Diary of a Killer Cat: -there’s two more books featuring Tuffy, entitled The -Return of the Killer Cat -and The -Killer Cat Strikes Back! -Her brief biography is written in first person point of view, and -Fine shares with us a little about her childhood and her writing -process. The Web site lists the many awards Fine won over the years, -including the 1995 Nottinghamshire -Libraries Award for The -Diary of a Killer Cat. -There is also a section about Fine having been the United Kingdom’s -Children’s Laureate for the years 2001-2003. A link is provided -for the Children’s Laureate homepage: -http://www.booktrusted.co.uk/childrenslaureate/. -The current Children’s Laureate is Michael Rosen. -

Healthypet.com: -Cat FAQs

http://www.healthypet.com/faq_list.aspx?id=2. -Healthypet.com is produced by the American Animal Hospital Associate. -The Cat FAQs provides answers to common questions about cats. Topics -are organized under category headings, “Behavior”, -“General Health”, “Diseases”, etc. The -behavior questions may be of especial interest as a thematic -connection to Fine’s book. The Dog FAQs can be linked from this -page, too.

“Cats: -Plans for Perfection” from National Geographic

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/features/97/cats/index.html. -“The story of cats is ultimately a story about design”: -this statement opens this intriguing online exhibit on cats. Children -will love the intricate drawings. The drawing of the “retractable -claw” moves to show how it works. Another drawing depicts a -Sabertooth marking its territory on a tree branch; the text beside it -notes that domestic cats do the same thing. -

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