Grounded

Grounded by Aisha Saeed, Huda Al-Marashi, Jamilah Thompkins Bigelow, & S.K. Ali follows five diverse characters who each report to the airport in the hopes of flying home quickly. It is not until all flights become grounded that they decide to work together to solve the mysterious disappearance of a cat named snickerdoodle. Through their efforts to find snickerdoodle, unlikely friendships form while the characters' simultaneously overcome their personal obstacles and learn to appreciate unexpected challenges.

Common Core State Standard:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.4.6 Compare and contrast the point of view from which different stories are narrated, including the difference between first- and third-person narrations.

During reading:

• Cover essential vocabulary terms as they arise in the story:

  • Grounded: prevented from flying due to natural conflicts

  • M.O.N.A.: Muslims of North America conference that the main characters and their families attended before returning back to the airport.

  • Muslim: a person who follows the religion of Islam

  • NokNok: adaptation of the social media platform TikTok

  • Congress: a position of power where the individual works with others to represent the American people and make national laws

  • Anxiety: a feeling of worry, nervousness, or uneasiness

  • Convention: a large meeting or conference

• Example discussion questions to drive comprehension:

  • Why is Hanna obsessed with finding snickerdoodle? Is there another reason for her obsession besides wanting to bring the cat home to it's owner?

  • Why is Ruqi obsessed with the Rube Goldberg machine throughout the story? What is the purpose of having this detail in the story?

  • What role does Jake play in the story?

  • What role does Ruqi play in the story? 

    • Does her dream in chapter 49 help them find where snickerdoodle was? Explain why or why not

      • Did Ruqi know where snickerdoodle was all along? How does this idea connect to her obsession with the Rube Goldberg machine?

  • How do the main characters' grow/develop over time? In what ways did they change?

  • How does the relationships between the characters and their family (e.g. Feek and his father, Hanna and her father, Sami and his parents, Nora and her mother) evolve over the course of the book?

  • What does the role of social media play in the story? How does social media help to fuel the investigation of snickerdoodle?

  • How do the maps help to visualize and improve your understanding of what is happening in the story?

After reading: 

• Students will be given the task of creating and adding a new character to the group of kids in the novel, explaing what they would have the character do in the story.

• For an added or more challenging activity: students will be given the task of collaborating in groups to create a game board that mimics the setting of the story (Chutes and Ladders is a good pattern)

  • Students must use similar obstacles/problems that the main characters face in the story as ways to get ahead or be pulled back in the game

  • Groups will exchange boards and play