New Kid
by Jerry Craft
Informational Resources:
Author and Illustrator Information:
Jerry Craft’s website:
Jerry Craft Biography:
Activities & Resources:
Activities:
Teaching Guide for New Kid (HarperCollins Publishing):
https://jerrycraft.com/wp-content/uploads/TG-9780062691200.pdf
Author Talk with Jerry Craft by HarperKids (5:41):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OCy7gjdMvjU
Jerry Craft Drawing Lesson Using SImple Shapes (2:01):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UoCdr-87XZ0
New Kids:
10 Easy Ways Anyone Can Help the New Kid at School:
Read this article and answer the discussion questions at the end:
https://www.tolerance.org/magazine/spring-2019/the-new-kid-in-class
Recipes:
Food is mentioned quite a bit in New Kid.
Recipe for pepper steak:
https://www.dinneratthezoo.com/pepper-steak-stir-fry/
Recipe for doughnuts:
https://www.superhealthykids.com/recipes/healthier-homemade-donuts/
Recipe for sweet potato pie:
https://www.parenting.com/food-recipes/sweet-potato-pie/
Puppets:
Alexandra is known for making puppets. How to make a sock puppet:
https://www.wikihow.com/Make-a-Sock-Puppet
Write a script for a puppet show. Perform your show for younger kids!
Comics:
Jordan draws comics based on his experiences at Riverdale. Design your own comic based on your personal experiences.
MakerSpace Activities:
Jordan had a hard time finding his classes at Riverdale. Design a map of your school to help new students find places like the gym, cafeteria, office, and other important locations.
Design a 3-D model of your school using cardboard, legos, or other materials to help new students find places like the gym, cafeteria, office, and other important locations. .
Jordan and Liam love playing video games together. Design your own video game using Bloxels, Minecraft, or pencil and paper.
Use cloth, ribbon, old socks, and other materials to make a puppet. Here are some ideas:
https://artfulparent.com/hand-puppets-for-kids/
Discussion Questions:
Have you ever been new to a school? How did you feel?
Have you ever felt out of place (at school or somewhere else)? Tell about your experience.
Jerry Craft, the author and illustrator, uses popular movies and TV shows as inspiration for the chapter titles. Why do you think he chose to do that?
Why do you think Jordan was hiding when he was in Liam’s car? (page 13)
What do you think the author is trying to communicate with the illustrations on pages 18 and 19?
What do you think Alexandra’s classmates think of her introduction (page 32 and 33)? What impression does Alexandra make on you?
Why does Jordan compare himself to Batman?
Why does Jordan have to be like a chameleon as he rides the bus to school (pages 56-57)? Why does he change as he passes through each neighborhood?
Do you think Drew should have confronted Ms. Rawle? (page 90) Was he justified in saying those things to her?
On page 96, Jordan’s mom says “in order to be successful in corporate America, you have to know how to play the game.” What does she mean by that? What is “the game?”
How do you think Alexandra feels when Drew asks if she would like to walk with him and Jordan (pages 100-101)? How do you know? Do the illustrations give you any clues?
What is Jordan’s grandfather trying to tell him on page 114? What do the different foods mean?
On page 128, Jordan and Drew discuss their favorite books. What are your favorite books and why?
What are the differences between the books recommended for Alex and Maury? (page 129) Why do you think the teacher chose those particular books?
How do you think Jordan’s dad feels in the illustration on page 154? What is the author trying to convey?
Do your impressions of Alexandra change when you learn why she wears a puppet on her hand? Explain why your impressions changed.
Why do you think Jordan chose that moment in the cafeteria to stand up to Andy (page 206)?
Should Ms. Rawle have read Jordan’s sketchbook? Why or why not?
If you wrote a sequel to New Kid and Jordan’s second year at Riverdale, what would you include? What do you think would be different from his first year?
What can you do to help new kids at your school feel welcome and included?
Book Talk Teasers:
Read the Readers Theater for New Kid.
Watch the book trailer on the Texas Bluebonnet Award YouTube channel.
Read Alikes:
Going to a New School
Jamieson, Victoria. All’s Faire in Middle School. Homeschooled by Renaissance Fair enthusiasts, eleven-year-old Imogene has a hard time fitting in when her wish to enroll in public school is granted. (NoveList Plus)
Telgemeier, Raina. Ghosts. Catrina and her family have moved to the coast of Northern California for the sake of her little sister, Maya, who has cystic fibrosis--and Cat is even less happy about the move when she is told that her new home is haunted, and Maya sets her heart on meeting a ghost. (NoveList Plus)
Weeks, Sarah. Save Me a Seat. Ravi has just moved to the United States from India and has always been at the top of his class; Joe has lived in the same town his whole life and has learning problems--but when their lives intersect in the first week of fifth grade they are brought together by a common enemy (the biggest bully in their class) and the need to take control of their lives. (NoveList Plus)
Middle School
Asher, Diana Harmon. Sidetracked. Seventh-grader Joseph Friedman is friendless and puny, with ADD to boot. He spends most of his time avoiding the class bully and hiding out in the Resource Room. But the Resource Room teacher encourages (i.e., practically forces) him to join the school cross country team, and he meets Heather, a new student who's tough and athletic and refuses to be pushed around by anybody. (NoveList Plus)
Hale, Shannon. Real Friends. Shannon and Adrienne have been best friends ever since they were little. But one day, Adrienne starts hanging out with Jen, the most popular girl in class and the leader of a circle of friends called The Group. Everyone in The Group wants to be Jen's #1, and some girls would do anything to stay on top . . . even if it means bullying others. (NoveList Plus)
Mahoney, Kristin. The 47 People You’ll Meet in Middle School. Discover the ins and outs of middle school in this guide from an older sister to her younger sister. From tackling a new building to meeting new people like the assistant principal, the class pet, the Huggers, the renegade, the tomato kid, your old best friend's new best friend, this is a must-read for everyone starting middle school. (NoveList Plus)
Platt, Jason. Middle School Misadventures. When a year of mischief culminates in the threat of summer school and one last-minute option to get out of it, Newell endeavors to prepare a worthwhile performance for a school talent show without having any particular talent. (NoveList Plus)
Making Comics
Alvarez Gomez, Lorena. Nightlights. Every night, tiny stars appear out of the darkness in little Sandy's bedroom. She catches them and creates wonderful creatures to play with until she falls asleep, and in the morning brings them back to life in the whimsical drawings that cover her room. (NoveList Plus)
Clements, Andrew. Lunch Money. Twelve-year-old Greg, who has always been good at moneymaking projects, is surprised to find himself teaming up with his lifelong rival, Maura, to create a series of comic books to sell at school. (NoveList Plus)
Morris, Chad. Squint. Flint Minett has keratoconus, an eye disease, but desperately wants to win a comic book art contest so that he and his new friend McKell Panganiban will be better accepted at middle school. (NoveList Plus)