Weathering Loss, Facing the Future & Riding the Waves of Family Dynamics
A Multimodal Text Set & Inquiry Unit
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The homepage will...
- Provide a general overview of our multimodal text set "unit," our critical theme, and suggested grade level with focal standards;
- Explain the significance of the critical theme; and
- Introduce the anchor text (A Tear in the Ocean).
Anchor Text:
Anchor Text:
A Tear in the Ocean
A Tear in the Ocean
H. M. Bouwman
H. M. Bouwman
&
&
Yuko Shimizu
Yuko Shimizu
This multimodal text set unit is suggested and designed for 5th grade. It can be adapted to meet the standards of other grade levels.
- RL.5.2 Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text, including how characters in a story or drama respond to challenges or how the speaker in a poem reflects upon a topic; summarize the text.
- RL.5.3 Compare and contrast two or more characters, settings, or events in a story or drama, drawing on specific details in the text.
- RI.5.4 Determine the meaning of general academic and domain-specific words and phrases in a text relevant to a grade 5 topic or subject area.
- RI.5.5 Compare and contrast the overall structure of events, ideas, concepts, or information in two or more texts.
Using the anchor text and the critical theme, students will engage in critical literacy. They will learn about a real life topic from fiction, nonfiction, and multimodal resources. The resources are provided here to help students read across text and think critical about climate justice while engaging in well-rounded, meaningful reading instruction. These for 5th grade standards are focal standards that can be met by using these resources.
Related NC Content Area State Standards:
- Science
- 5.E.1 Understand weather patterns and phenomena, making connections to the weather in a particular place and time
- 5.L.2 Understand the interdependence of plants and animals with their ecosystem.
- Social Studies
- 5.G.1.2 Explain the positive and negative effects of human activity on the physical environment of the United States, past and present.
- 5.C&G.2.2 Analyze the rights and responsibilities of United States citizens in relation to the concept of "common good" according to the United States Constitution (Bill of Rights).
- 5.C&G.2.4 Explain why civic participation is important in the United States.
Critical Theme: Climate/Environmental Justice
Critical Theme: Climate/Environmental Justice
A major theme recognized in A Tear in the Ocean is climate change and climate/environmental justice. The way in which the sweet ocean was changing to salty water reflected the many ways in which our own world is changing through climate change and global warming.
Significance of Critical Theme
Significance of Critical Theme
Why Should We Teach About Climate Justice?
Why Should We Teach About Climate Justice?
According to a 2019 study from NPR:
- 80% of parents in the U.S. support teaching climate change
- 45% of parents say that they have never spoken about climate change with their children (Kamenetz, 2019).
- 86% of teachers agree climate change should be taught
- 55% of teachers say they have never covered climate change in their classroom or even talked to their students about it (Kamenetz, 2019).
Research has been conducted through NASA, The United States Environmental Protection Agency, and others analyzing the impacts of climate change on human health and the environment. Activists, of all ages, are taking a stand to educate the public and reverse these dangers before they are irreversible. Around the world, they are beginning to recognize and stress the significance of this climate emergency. It is vital that students understand the impact their carbon footprint leaves and how it is affecting others.
Integrating Climate Change into Instruction
Integrating Climate Change into Instruction
- The number of new children’s books looking at the climate crisis, global heating and the natural world has more than doubled over the past 12 months, according to data from Nielsen Book Research (Varona, 2019).
- These books range throughout grade levels and include various formats and genres
- Easily incorporated into different subjects
- Reading/Writing
- Science
- Math
- Example: Replacing one regular light bulb with a compact fluorescent bulb will save 150 pounds of carbon dioxide per year. If you replace 25 regular light bulbs, then how many pounds of carbon dioxide will you save per year?
Source: NPR/Ipsos polls of 505 teachers conducted March 21-29. The credibility interval for the overall sample is 5 percentage points. This question was asked of the 55% of teachers who said that they do not teach climate change. Respondents could select up to three answers. “Other” and “Don’t know” responses not shown. Credit: Alyson Hurt/NPR
Anchor Text Information & Guide
Anchor Text Information & Guide
Author: H.M. Bouwman
Illustrator: Yuko Shimizu
Genre: Fiction Subgenre: Fantasy Format: Novel
Awards: A Tear in the Ocean has not yet received or been nominated for any major awards, as it was just released just this year (2019).
Book Talks/Reviews: There are currently no book talks or book trailers of good quality published online for A Tear in the Ocean yet, as it was only published this year; however, check out its ratings on Goodreads, Kirkus Reviews, and Compass Book Ratings. Also read this interview with H.M. Bouwman! Here is Bouwman's author site, as well. Be sure to also check out Yuko Shimizu's art page here.
Summary:
A Tear in the Ocean (2019) by H.M. Bouwman tells the intersecting stories of three children as they come of age in the second world described in the companion novels, The Remarkable & Very True Story of Lucy & Snowcap and A Crack in the Sea (2017).
In the present, the normally sweet water of the second world is turning salty and undrinkable. Putnam, who we know from A Crack in the Sea, is the 12-year-old Raftworlder who is destined to become the next Raft King. Frustrated that his father, the current Raft King, refuses to take action to fix the salty water, Putnam decides he is going to sail to the deep south to find out what is causing the change in the water. Meanwhile, also in the present, Artie is a 12-year-old southern Islander running away from her abusive stepfather after her mother’s death. When she and Putnam accidentally end up on the same boat, they head south together in search of a solution to the salty water and a new place to call home.
About 100 years earlier, Rayel is a 14-year-old girl destined to be the next Raft King after her younger brother Solomon passes away. Her mother, the Raft King’s wife, hates Rayel because she is “ugly” and because she “stole” Solomon’s love from her; she is also arranging Rayel’s marriage to the Raft King’s adviser, who is twice her age. When Rayel overhears that her fiance may be plotting to kill her father in order to become the next Raft King himself, Rayel decides to sail away to avoid these plans, changing the path of her future. Like Putnam and Artie, Rayel heads south. On her journey, she discovers a new gift and makes a friend.
How Does A Tear in the Ocean Anchor the Text Set Created?
Told through alternating perspectives between the three main characters, A Tear in the Ocean addresses grief and trauma, family relationships, and child advocacy. All three characters have their own personal struggles: Artie losing her mother and the relationship with her abusive stepfather; Putnam losing his mother and the anger he feels toward his father for letting her go; and Rayel losing her brother and shutting herself off from the world. In the book, these struggles/demons are represented by white bears that follow the three heroes - everyone has one. Though all three go through trials and tribulations related to their struggles, through friendship and fighting their bears they all come to realize that the fears they have will not freeze them; the will not kill them; they can overcome.
Cultural Diversity:
All characters featured in A Tear in the Ocean are brown-skinned and have Afro-textured hair; in A Crack in the Sea, it is explained that everyone in the second world is descended from Africans who had escaped enslavement during the transatlantic slave trade. It is not a topic of focus in A Tear in the Ocean as it was in its companion, but it is mentioned at various points throughout the novel. Although Bouwman and Shimizu do not write and illustrate from own voice perspectives, all character descriptions and illustrations are sensitive to the characters reflected, both visually and verbally.
While this is a fantasy novel, meaning that the entire world featured in the book is completely made up by the author, all elements are written authentically and accurately as based on the set up of the second world as written in A Crack in the Sea. It is obvious through Bouwman's writing that she cares deeply about the topics included in the book and that she is supportive of children advocating for themselves and others.
One caveat of using A Tear in the Ocean in the classroom is that it can be a more challenging text for students. This is due mostly to its fantasy subgenre and the jumping around between time periods; some students may need extra support while reading this book for these reasons. Also, the topic of abuse that comes up when discussing Artie's character may be emotionally difficult or triggering for some students; therefore, it is important to be cautious when discussing this topic with students. The book does discuss these topics in a sensitive manner, however, and can be a good entryway to talking about such a difficult topic.
References
Bouwman, H. M. (2019). A tear in the ocean. New York, NY: G.P. Putnam's Sons.
Kamenetz, A. (2019, April 22). Most Teachers Don't Teach Climate Change; 4 In 5 Parents Wish They Did. NPR. Retrieved from https://www.npr.org/2019/04/22/714262267/most-teachers-dont-teach-climate-change-4-in-5-parents-wish-they-did.
Varona, P. (2019, September 11). Climate change is now a bedtime story: How children’s literature is explaining environmental crisis to young readers. Retrieved from https://theoutline.com/post/7920/climate-change-childrens-books?zd=1&zi=6dofexwq.
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