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Summary
Summary
Dragon Pearl is a science fiction novel about Min Kim, a 13-year-old fox that must hide her ability to shape shift from others for the safety of herself and her family. Min dreams of leaving her planet Jinju and going into the Space Forces like her older brother Jun. However, when Jun is accused of being a deserter in search of the Dragon Pearl that has immense power, Min goes on a journey to bring her brother home and prove his innocence. Throughout her journey Min is forced to improvise and use her powers to survive dangerous encounters with mercenaries, ghosts, and humans and is shocked by the truth.
Keywords/phrases: Lies, Magic, Family, Power, Space Forces
Suggested Delivery: Independent read
Key Vocabulary
Shape shift: a person or being with the ability to change their physical form at will
Condensers: A heat exchanging system that converts a vapor into a liquid
Hydroponics: The process of growing plants in sand, gravel, or liquid, with added nutrients but without soil
Gumiho: A nine-tailed fox, a creature that appears in folktales in Korean mythology
Terraforming: The process of changing the features such as the atmosphere or temperature of a planet or moon to make them similar to Earth so humans can live on them.
Marauders: A person who goes from place to place looking to attack, raid, or steal things.
Desertion: The act of illegally leaving your post without permission and the intention of not returning
Mercenaries: A person that is working only for money or other rewards.
Reading Strategies
Before
Before
I will pre-teach vocabulary to students. Dragon Pearl contains terminology relating to Korean culture and mythology that students may be unfamiliar with and will likely need to be taught beforehand for better comprehension of the material.
During
During
As students read the novel, they will individually use the post it strategy. As they read, students will put post it notes in any place of the science fiction novel where they need clarification or where they have a strong reaction to the content they’re reading.
After
After
Students will sketch note important events from the novel to demonstrate their comprehension of the sequence of events that have occurred. Within these sketchnotes, students can include images, words, symbols, etc. to depict their understanding of the novel.
Writing Activity
Reading Standard: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.4.4 – Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
Writing Standard: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.4.1 – Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons and information.
Activity: Students will write their opinions answering the questions, “Should Min have left home, why or why not? How would the story have been different if Min did not leave home? How has Min changed throughout the story? And what do you think was the biggest obstacle Min faced on her journey?” While students answer these questions, students should back up their opinions with strong reasoning and information from the text.
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