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    Hatchet Background Knowledge

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    api-332364153
    This document provides background information and activities for students to learn about the novel Hatchet by Gary Paulsen. It includes sections about the author's background, details about the plane the main character flies in, maps showing locations from the story, descriptions of the taiga biome and animals found there, causes of heart attacks, how to make a fire, uses of tools like a hatchet and bow and arrow, and a survival skills quiz. The student is to complete several interactive activities on the topics to gain understanding to help them read the book.

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    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    Hatchet Background Knowledge

    Uploaded by

    api-332364153
    541 views5 pages
    This document provides background information and activities for students to learn about the novel Hatchet by Gary Paulsen. It includes sections about the author's background, details about the plane the main character flies in, maps showing locations from the story, descriptions of the taiga biome and animals found there, causes of heart attacks, how to make a fire, uses of tools like a hatchet and bow and arrow, and a survival skills quiz. The student is to complete several interactive activities on the topics to gain understanding to help them read the book.

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    hatchet background knowledge

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    This document provides background information and activities for students to learn about the novel Hatchet by Gary Paulsen. It includes sections about the author's background, details about the plane the main character flies in, maps showing locations from the story, descriptions of the taiga biome and animals found there, causes of heart attacks, how to make a fire, uses of tools like a hatchet and bow and arrow, and a survival skills quiz. The student is to complete several interactive activities on the topics to gain understanding to help them read the book.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as doc, pdf, or txt
    541 views5 pages

    Hatchet Background Knowledge

    Uploaded by

    api-332364153
    This document provides background information and activities for students to learn about the novel Hatchet by Gary Paulsen. It includes sections about the author's background, details about the plane the main character flies in, maps showing locations from the story, descriptions of the taiga biome and animals found there, causes of heart attacks, how to make a fire, uses of tools like a hatchet and bow and arrow, and a survival skills quiz. The student is to complete several interactive activities on the topics to gain understanding to help them read the book.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as doc, pdf, or txt
    of 5

    Name _____________________________ Date: _______________ Period: ______________

    Hatchet by Gary Paulsen


    Building Background Knowledge
    Somebody was screaming, screaming as the plane drove down into the water. Someone screamed
    tight animal screams of fear and pain and [Brian] did not know that it was his sound, that
    roared against the water that took him and the plane still deeper, down in the water. He saw
    nothing but sensed blue, cold blue-green. . . .
    Hatchet, pg29
    Soon, you will be reading the novel Hatchet by Gary Paulsen. This activity will give you some
    background knowledge about what happens in the book.
    Go to: http://mrsbeckershatchet.wikispaces.com/ to start. Have fun!
    About the Author write complete sentences
    First read about the Iditarod. Then read about the author.
    1.

    Where did Paulsen live when he completed his first novel?


    ____________________________________________________________

    What sport did Paulsen get involved with around 1983?


    ____________________________________________________________

    How many books has Paulsen written for kids and adults?
    ____________________________________________________________

    Why did Paulsen write the book Brian's Winter?


    ____________________________________________________________

    ____________________________________________________________
    It's important to decide whether an author is credible (or believable) when he writes,
    especially when the book is about a situation that could be real. The book Hatchet is
    about a boy who has to survive in the wilderness of Northern Canada by himself. What
    things in Paulsen's background do you think would make you believe the situations he talks
    about in the book?
    __________________________________________________________________
    __________________________________________________________________
    __________________________________________________________________
    1

    2.

    The Plane Trip

    Brian flies to meet his dad in a Cessna Skyhawk airplane. We see planes flying over school
    all the time but they're usually very large ones. This plane is quite small.
    Google "Cessna Skyhawk" and then click on Images in the upper left-hand corner to see
    pictures of the plane. Pick one of the images and use it as a model to draw a sketch of the
    plane below.

    Below is a picture of what the control panel for an airplane looks like. Draw an arrow to
    the instrument on the panel that you think would control whether the plane goes up or
    down.

    3.

    Setting Location

    1.

    Put a dot on the map at the approximate location of Chantilly, VA and label it Westfield.

    Go to:maps.google.com.
    1. Put a dot on your activity sheet map at the approximate location of Chantilly and label it
    "Chantilly".
    2. Use maps.google.com to find Hampton, New York.
    2.

    3. Now, click on "Get Directions" on the upper left-hand side of the screen. In A Type in
    Hampton, New York and in B type in Lac des Ouefs Canada and click "Get Directions".
    Google won't be able to calculate directions because there are no roads between the two
    locations but it will give you an idea of where Brian might have been.
    4. Mark the location for Hampton, NY and for Lac des Ouefs on the map on your activity
    sheet and label each of them. Draw a line between the two to show the route Brian might
    have taken in the plane.
    5. Now, click and hold someplace close to Lac des Ouefs on the map. The cursor will turn
    into a hand. Use this to drag Lac des Ouefs to the center of the screen.
    6. Zoom in using the "+" sign to see what Brian might have seen while he was trying to land
    the plane. Click on the picture and use the "hand" to drag the picture around.
    3

    Based on what you saw in the satellite picture, how hard do you think it would be for
    Brian to find a lake to crash into in the Canadian Northern Wilderness? Why?

    _______________________________________________________________________
    _______________________________________________________________________
    4.

    Setting Biome
    Taiga
    o What is the temperature in the Taiga in the summer? _____________________
    o Why do birds come to the Taiga each year? _____________________________
    _____________________________________________________________

    Porcupine
    o About how many quills does a porcupine have? ___________________________
    o How does a porcupine use its quills to defend itself? ______________________
    ______________________________________________________________

    Moose
    o Why do you think a charging moose (one running towards you) would be very
    dangerous?
    ______________________________________________________________

    Black Bear
    o What do black bears eat? __________________________________________

    Kingfisher
    o Why do you think watching the kingfisher made Brian think about making a spear?
    ______________________________________________________________

    Ruffled Grouse (Fool Bird)


    o What common bird is the Ruffled Grouse roughly the same size as?
    ______________________________________________________________

    o What do young ruffled grouses often do in fall and early winter that might make
    people call them fool birds?
    ______________________________________________________________
    ______________________________________________________________

    5.

    Chokecherry (Gut Cherry)


    o What animal loves to eat chokecherries?
    _______________________________

    Heart Attack
    What causes a heart attack? ___________________________________________
    __________________________________________________________________

    6.

    How to Make a Fire


    Under Gathering Flammable Materials, read step #1. What can you make kindling out
    of? (Hint: see list below step.) List four things that you think Brain would have found in
    the woods.
    __________________________________________________________________

    Next, go back up to the top of the page, Step # 1 Lighting the Fire
    Click on How to Make a Fire With Flint and Steel or Quartzite and Steel.

    7.

    What happens when you strike (hit) the rock against the hatchet blade?
    __________________________________________________________________

    Tools
    What can you use a hatchet for? __________________________________________
    __________________________________________________________________

    What can a bow and arrow do? ___________________________________________


    __________________________________________________________________

    Survival
    Score: ______
    8.

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