Additional Book Information:

• Copyright: 2019 by Deborah Hopkinson

• Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers

• Publishing Date: February 12, 2019

• Reading Level (Lexile): 630L

5 key words to describe this book:

• Adventurous

• Historical

• Page-turner

• Mysterious

• Unpredictable

ELA CT Common Core Standard that might be met by reading this book:

RL.5.5 Explain how a series of chapters, scenes, or stanzas fits together to provide the overall structure of a particular story, drama, or poem.

Suggested Delivery:

• Independent Read or Small Group

Electronic Resources: 

• https://www.natgeokids.com/uk/discover/history/general-history/world-war-two/ 

  • Show students this website prior to reading to teach them some background information and basic facts about WWII. 

• https://www.ducksters.com/history/world_war_ii/ 

  • Students can utilize this website before and throughout reading How I Became a Spy. It provides descriptions and images of many aspects of WWII, including a timeline and activity to evaluate understanding. 

Video to Build Schema:

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNgU_CRWnRU 

ELA Teaching Suggestions:

Key vocabulary that may have to be taught for students to better understand the text:

• World War II: a war from 1939 to 1945 between the Axis (Germany, Japan, and Italy) and the Allies (Britain, the US, and the Soviet Union among others)

• Air raid: an attack by armed airplanes

• Cipher: a secret way of writing text; a way of writing in code

• Nazis: a political group that ruled Germany between 1933 and 1945 under the leadership of Adolf Hitler

• The Office of Strategic Services (OSS): the intelligence agency of the United States during WWII created to gather information about other countries

• Double agent: a spy pretending to serve one government while actually serving another

Reading strategy suggestions to increase literal and/or inferential comprehension:

• Before Reading

  • Students will fill out the  "What I Know" and "What I Want to Know" sections of a K-W-L chart in regard to the main events/ideas involved in WWII. 

• During Reading

  • Students are encouraged to explore the important elements of any narrative text using a story map. One of the follow graphic organizer templates can be utilized, each at different levels. (Level 1, Level 2, Level 3, Level 4)

• After Reading

  • Students will create a graphical representation of the events in the book using the following interactive from readwritethink.org.

https://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/student-interactives/timeline 

Writing activity that requires students to demonstrate inferential comprehension:

• Research and write a report on the geographical setting of the story, including an explanation as to why this setting was important to the effect of the story.