The Strangers
by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Informational Resources:
Author Information:
Margaret Peterson Haddix Biography:
https://haddixbooks.com/about/bio/
Activities & Resources:
Activities:
Codes:
Secret Codes for Kids:
https://www.giftofcuriosity.com/secret-codes-for-kids/
Become a Secret Message Master:
https://www.indigoimage.com/secretmsg/index.html
Cryptology for kids:
Write a letter to your future self and then encode it using a code phrase like the Greystone’s mom. Do this by hand or by using a substitution cipher tool:
Alternate Realities:
Parallel Universes:
https://academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Parallel_universe
Is There Such a Thing as a Parallel Universe:
https://www.wonderopolis.org/wonder/is-there-such-a-thing-as-a-parallel-universe
Write your own alternate reality story using a self created alternate world. How did the world get this way? What caused this alternate reality to form? How is the alternate reality discovered? Is travel between realities possible?
Dystopian Society:
What is DYSTOPIA? What does DYSTOPIA mean? DYSTOPIA meaning, definition & explanation (1:44):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9gZsfNg9W0
Mind-Blowing Dystopian Books for Middle Grade Readers:
https://www.readbrightly.com/dystopian-middle-grade-books/
Write your own dystopian story using a self-created dystopian world. How did the world get this way? How do people live now? What does the world look like?
MakerSpace Activities:
How to Make a Mini Robot Bug (3:23):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=TFkUan5Uujs&feature=emb_logo
Create a series of logos that fit together to create one image like the Greystones mom did to reveal a map of their basement. Draw the images or create them digitally.
Create an art piece showing your world on one side and an alternate world on the other. Use whatever medium you would like. Paint, markers, crayons, collage, colored pencils, etc.
Design a method of instant travel, much like the spinning room in the Greystone’s basement.
Discussion Questions:
The First Chapter ends with a cliffhanger. What is your early prediction as to what is bothering the kids mother?
Emma counts weird things that happen during her day. Look back on your day so far and count how many weird things you have seen? Do you think that number is more or less than usual? Why or why not?
Chess, Finn, and Emma discover that there are three other kids with their names and birthdays. Who do you think these kids might be? Where did they come from?
The Greystones have a code word to use in emergencies: “succotash.” What code word would you choose for your family and why?
Chess thinks about a time he wished he had said something different. Think of a time you wish you had said something. Describe what happened and what you wish you would have said.
When Emma is scared of going into the basement she uses thoughts of math to comfort herself. What thoughts would you use to comfort yourself if you were scared?
The Greystones mom uses butterflies in her company logo. What imagery would you use in your company logo? Design your logo.
The Greystone kids discover a secret room in their basement filled with all kinds of supplies. Create a list of supplies you would keep if you had a secret room to put them in.
After spinning through a tunnel into the basement of a different house, the kids are unable to figure out where they are. Where do you think they ended up?
They Greystones need a phrase to use as a decoder for the message their mother left them. What phrase would you choose as an encryption code?
The first sentence of the decoded letter reads, “How much do you know about alternate worlds?” What do you know about alternate worlds? What does that make you think of?
The kids discuss the idea that every decision could cause an alternate reality to form. What are some decisions you can think of that would cause an alternate reality to form?
Imagine an alternate reality version of your home and life. What does it look like? What are you doing? What decisions created this alternate world?
Predict what will happen when the kids reach the public hall. Who will be there? What will happen? How do they react?
The Greystone’s mom confesses to a list of crimes. Why do you believe she confessed?
The longer the kids stay in the alternate world, the more they are sure that their emotions are being controlled by a gas in the air. What might the government gain by controlling people this way?
How would you escape the trouble the kids find at the public hall? Hatch your own escape plan.
The Greystone kids make sure to rescue the Gustano kids, even at the risk of being captured themselves. Would you have made the same decision? Why or why not?
The Gustano kids have a hard time trusting the Greystone kids. How do you think you would react in the same situation? Why?
What do you imagine will happen in the next book?
Book Talk Teasers:
Show the book trailer for The Strangers. After viewing, ask for predictions for what will happen in the story.
Discuss what an alternate reality might be. Ask for descriptions of what an alternate reality of ours might entail. Read the book to find out more.
Read Alikes:
Banks, Angelica. Finding Serendipity. When Tuesday McGillycuddy and her beloved dog Baxterr discover that Tuesday's mother--the famous author Serendipity Smith--has gone missing, they set out on a magical adventure. In their quest to find Serendipity, they discover the mysterious and unpredictable place that stories come from. (NoveList Plus)
Mafi, Tahereh. Furthermore, Yearning to find her missing father, 12-year-old Alice Alexis Queensmeadow embarks on an adventure to find him by traveling through the mythical, upside-down, dangerous land of Furthermore along with a boy named Oliver, whose own magical ability is based in lies and deceit. (NoveList Plus)
Martin, Emily Winfield. Snow & Rose. Snow and Rose search the forest for their missing father and discover there is a sinister magic at work in the woods. (NoveList Plus)
Meloy, Colin. Wildwood. When her baby brother is kidnapped by crows, seventh-grader Prue McKeel ventures into the forbidden Impassable Wilderness--a dangerous and magical forest in the middle of Portland, Oregon--and soon finds herself involved in a war among the various inhabitants. (NoveList Plus)
Milford, Kate. Greenglass House. At Greenglass House, a smuggler's inn, twelve-year-old Milo, the innkeepers' adopted son, plans to spend his winter holidays relaxing but soon guests are arriving with strange stories about the house sending Milo and Meddy, the cook's daughter, on an adventure. (NoveList Plus)