Molly Bang crafts a tale about anger that kids of all ages can relate to. Click here to read When Sophie Gets Angry–Really, Really Angry… at the ICDL (International Children’s Digital Library), then answer the questions below.
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1. When you watch a movie or read a book, you are the audience. When writers sit down to create a story, they think about their audience, or who will read the book when it’s finished. Molly Bang is the author of When Sophie Gets Angry–Really, Really Angry… Describe the audience.
2. Writers write for a reason. This reason is called the author’s purpose. There are three main purposes. The first is to entertain, which means to tell a story that is fun to read. The second reason is to inform. An author informs their audience when they teach them something new. The third reason is to persuade, which is when an author tries to get their audience to do something, or stop doing something. Describe Molly Bang’s purpose for writing this book.
3. Narratives are stories, and the characters are the animals, people, or other creatures in the story. Who are the characters in this narrative?
4. The setting of a narrative is where and when it takes place. What is the setting of When Sophie Gets Angry–Really, Really Angry…?
5. A narrative has a conflict, and a resolution. The conflict is the problem. The resolution is how the problem gets fixed. How would you describe the conflict of this narrative?
6. How does Sophie resolve the conflict?
7. Molly Bang received a Caldecott Award for her illustrations in this book. How does she use color to make the characters, setting and action come to life?
8. Writers use similes to compare two things with the words like or as. For example, an author could say a runner is as speedy as a cheetah. Metaphors compare two things without using like or as. When Sophie gets angry, Molly Bang uses the metaphor, “Sophie is a volcano, ready to explode.” Write another metaphor for anger that describes Sophie. Next, write a simile for Sophie.
9. Many authors use onomatopoeia to make their books fun to read. Onomatopoeia are words that sound like something real. Some examples are bonk, splat and whoosh. Find “PABAM!” in the book. Why does Molly Bang (whose last name happens to be an example of onomatopoeia) use onomatopoeia on this page?
10. Create a list of five other examples of onomatopoeia that could be used instead of “PABAM!”
11. Alliteration is when authors use the same beginning sound for words. For example, a light, little leaf landed on a log in Louisiana late last night. Locate an example of alliteration in the book. Write the example of alliteration, then draw a picture that matches the words.
12. Look closely at each page of the book. Find your favorite illustration. Use alliteration to describe what you see on the page.
13. The five senses are sight, touch, smell, taste and hearing. A person is mindful when they focus one or more senses on a single thought, feeling, flavor, texture, color or sound. Sophie is mindful after she cries. How does she use her senses during this part of the story?
14. How does mindfulness help Sophie feel better?
15. Describe a time you or someone you know were as angry as Sophie. Describe the conflict. Use transition words like first, next, then, before, after, etc. If there was a resolution, describe that too.
16. How could mindfulness have helped the person feel better?
17. When Sophie sits in the beech tree, Molly Bang writes, “The wide world comforts her.” Click here for a kids’ dictionary, then look up the meaning of comfort. How can the “wide world” comfort a person?
18. Describe a time something or someone comforted you. Use transition words like first, next, then, before, after, etc.
19. Think about a time when you comforted another person or animal. Describe what happened. Use transition words like first, next, then, before, after, etc.
20. When readers compare two things, they think about how they are the same. Compare yourself to Sophie.
21. Readers contrast two things when they think about how they are different. Contrast Sophie and yourself.
22. When Sophie gets home, it is “warm and smells good.” Warm and good are adjectives. Adjectives are used to describe something. Close your eyes and image the warm home, and why it smells good. Explain why the home smells good. Use other adjectives to describe what you imagine.
23. After reading When Sophie Gets Angry–Really, Really Angry…, what questions would you like to ask Sophie, her family, or the author?
24. Everyone feels angry, sad, or worried sometimes. These feelings are perfectly normal. It’s okay to feel these emotions, and it’s important to recognize them. Recognize means you know what something is, and that it is there. When we feel sad, worried, or angry about something, we can stop to be mindful of our feelings. When we hold on to one of these feelings for too long, it’s like trying to blow up a balloon more and more until it pops. When we feel like we’re going to pop like a balloon, we need to stop, recognize what is happening, then let out the air. Click here and explore a mindfulness exercise you can use anytime you feel like you’re about to pop like a balloon.
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E X T E N D . . . .
1. Imagine yourself coming home. Close your eyes and count to thirty. Be mindful of your surroundings. Write and complete the passage below to describe the experience.
When I walk inside, my home smells __________. I also smell __________. I see __________, __________, and __________. They are __________. I can hear __________, __________, __________, and __________. I sit down, and the __________ feels __________, and __________. __________ brings me a __________ for a snack, and I can taste __________, and __________. My home is…
2. Create the scene of yourself coming home. Draw, paint or sculpt what you described. Give it to someone special.
Close and Critical Reads 