Contemporary Realistic Fiction: Intermediate Grades 4th-6th

Contemporary Realistic Fiction 4-6 is derived from actual circumstances, with realistic settings and characteristics who face problems and opportunities that are within the range of what is possible in real life.

• Resemble real people• Live in a place that is or could be real• Participate in a plausible, if not probable, series of events• Presented with a dilemma that is of interest to children• Discover a realistic solution

Realistic fiction is not fantasy.

Categories• Humor• Mystery• Stories about Survival

Themes• Books about self-discovery and growing up• Books about family• Books about interpersonal relations• Books about school• Books about sports• Books about nature and animals• Books about adventure and survival• Books about romance and sexuality• Books about mental, physical, and emotional challenges• Books about moral dilemmas and moral responsibility• Books about social diversity and society• Books about aging, death and dying• Mystery books• Humorous books• Series books• Books about multicultural and international themes• Books that are magical realism

Works Cited: Temple, C., Martinez, M. & Yokota, J. (2011). Children's Books in Children's

Hands: An Introduction to Their Literature. Boston: Pearson

Plot Summary: Larnel and his mother stop in to see Mrs. Katz everyday because she is alone. Larnel notices the loneliness and brings Mrs. Katz a kitten that nobody else wants. We learn early in the book that Larnel is a caring, and thoughtful character that grows to love Mrs. Katz and Tush, the cat. The setting takes place is Mrs. Katz home, where Larnel visits daily to check in on her and Tush. While Larnel visits, he and Mrs. Katz trade stories about the sufferings that they and their cultures have gone through. The plot takes a turn when Mrs. Katz and Larnel come home to find a window had been left open and Tush is nowhere to be seen. The resolution to the story is that Larnel gets to spend Passover with Mrs. Katz, whom didn’t want to spend it along, and Tush had kittens. The themes of this story are suffering and triumph.

Reader Response Activity: This is a great read-aloud to do with students in grades 4th-6th. It would work to well with these ages, because this is when students are choosing their friends, and leaving out their other ones. It is also when students are learning about the past and how people suffered and overcame there suffering. I would have students research their heritage and where their ancestors came from. After they found out about their ancestors and where they came from I would then have them research any sufferings that they went through and how they overcame those sufferings.

Mrs. Katz and TushAuthor: Patricia PolaccoIllustrator: Patricia PolaccoGenre: Contemporary Realistic FictionGrade Range: Intermediate

Plot Summary: Eugene’s character is the bully of the school. He is mean, unkind, and rude to everyone he comes in contact with. Mr. Lincoln is the principal of the school and the coolest in his student’s eyes. Conflict comes up when Eugene is bullying another student and is talking about Mr. Lincoln and almost calling him the N word until he sees Mr. Lincoln is standing right there. Mr. Lincoln then looks for a way to get through to Eugene and notices him watching the birds in the school’s atrium. Mr. Lincoln asks Eugene for help on birds and realizes that Eugene is passionate about them and asks him to help him attract birds into the school atrium. The setting take place in the school and the school atrium. The plot then takes a turn when Eugene relapses back into the school bully again. Eugene calls out students for their race and uses hateful names on them. Eugene then breaks down and we realize that his acting out comes from his father and his prejudices. Mr. Lincoln helps Eugene see that people are just like the birds, in that the world would not be beautiful without every single one of them.

Reader Response Activity: Mr. Lincoln’s Way is a great read-aloud to teach students about race, racism, bias, discrimination, stereotypes and bullying and why they are not okay. This is a chance to explain to the students if they do not already know what these words mean, and why they are hurtful. I then would ask student’s what we as a nation have gone through by means of prejudice, discrimination and racism and how we overcame it. I then would have students draw something they are passionate about and inside the whatever they drew, write characteristic of himself or herself that make them unique as Mr. Lincoln showed Eugene everyone was unique just as the birds are.

Mr. Lincoln’s WayAuthor: Patricia PolaccoIllustrator: Patricia PolaccoGenre: Contemporary Realistic FictionGrade Range: Intermediate

! The Patchwork Quilt ! ! ! ! ! Author:Valerie Flournoy Illustrator: Jerry Pinkney Genre: Contemporary Realistic Fiction: Intermediate Grades 4-6 Grade Range: K-4

Plot Summary: Main character Tanya’s grandma makes quilts out of her families scarps of clothing material. Until one day the plot changes when Tanya’s grandma becomes ill and is not well enough to finish her masterpiece. Tanya decides to surprise her grandma by continuing to work on making the quilt piece by piece with help from her mother. As months go by Tanya and her mother continue to work away to finish the quilt for grandma. The story is set at Tanya’s house, but the seasons and months change throughout the story. The themes portrayed in this story are family, commitment, unity, and unchanging love.

Reader Response Activity: An appropriate activity for intermediate grades 4-6 to do after read-aloud book, The Patchwork Quilt is have students bring from home scraps of their family’s clothing to class. Each student will create a section of the quilt. The section of the quilt will be construction paper cut into the shape of a square. On the square each student will glue the scraps of their family’s clothing on the paper or quilt square. Students will also be able to use other materials such as glitter, stickers, string, color pencils, markers etc. to make their section of the quilt look appealing. In addition, students will write about their history, culture, and family of their quilt. After the students have finished creating their individual sections of a quilt. All of the construction paper quilts will be put together to form one big quilt. The quilt made up of the students individual pieces will be posted on the classroom wall. Like the story Tanya’s grandma’s quilt represented family, unity, commitment, and love. A teacher could have the classroom quilt represent similar things such as friendship and unity.

Smoky Night Author: Eve Bunting Illustrator: David Diaz Genre: Contemporary Realistic Fiction Grade Range: Intermediate Grades 2-4 & 4-6

Plot Summary: This story is set around the riots of 1992 that took place in Los Angeles. Characters Daniel, his mother Gena, and cat Jasmine watch the riots from their apartment window. Daniel and his mother watch looters in the streets violently destroy cars, windows, and streetlights and steal. Also Daniel and his mother are forced to leave their apartment because of their place being set on fire. Daniel’s cat Jasmine and their neighbor Mrs. Kim’s cat both have gone missing. This book tells a fictional story about how to overcome prejudice. both Daniel, his mother, and Mrs. Kim do not care for one another, but despite their difference they decide to overcome it and work together to find their cats. The theme is developed through the riots in Los Angeles and is in times of need people should always get along and come together despite their differences to overcome prejudice.

Reader Response Activity: For Intermediate 4-6th grade students it would be appropriate to have an activity that involved writing and researching. For example, students could write about a time in his or her life when they were frightened similar to how Daniel and his mother were frightened in the story. Also, students could write from Daniel’s cat Jasmine’s prospective of how they might think his cat felt in the situation. Students could also create an alternate ending of how Daniel finds his cat. The activity that involves research would involve students to research riots that have taken place in the United States or an other Countries. Students would use the research information and create a compare and contrast bubble map of either the riots that have taken place in Los Angeles compared to another states or Country.