The One Thing You'd Save
by Linda Sue Park
illustrated by Robert Sae-Heng
Informational Resources:
Author Information:
Linda Sue Park TEDxBeaconStreet (12:43):
https://www.yout-ube.com/watch?v=40xz0afCjnM
Illustrator Information:
https://www.robertsaeheng.com/
Activities & Resources:
Activities:
Discussion guide from Clarion Books: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1zvZ46j91rJaFKWeu5OOCP-qgsK_6Vp8y/view
Poetry
Write a sijo poem about the one thing you would save from a fire if your family and pets are already safe. https://www.writersdigest.com/write-better-poetry/sijo-poetic-form
Science
One student says he would have a hard time choosing which books to save. He has seven Neil deGrasse Tyson books to choose from. Investigate who Neil deGrase Tyson is and what types of books he writes. https://www.haydenplanetarium.org/tyson/
One student wants to save a plaque from a science fair. She mentions Ellen Ocha and Mae Jenison. Investigate these ladies and why they were mentioned. https://kids.britannica.com/kids/article/Mae-Jemison/400118
https://kids.britannica.com/kids/article/Ellen-Ochoa/442732
The student who wanted to save a plaque from a science fair proved that meteorites could be found in the dirt on the streets. Watch this video to see if this is true. (10:26) https://www.yout-ube.com/watch?v=9q3uNcJh4pc
Make a list of 10 endangered species and a way to help save each one.
(3:45) https://youtu.be/M1IDQSeJ1cs
Grow a philodendron from a cutting (12:42). https://youtu.be/TyvQlESsoz0
One student’s parent has diabetes. What is diabetes? Research diabetes. https://www.ducksters.com/science/biology/diabetes.php
Fire Safety
Discuss fire safety and escape routes with students. https://www.redcross.org/get-help/how-to-prepare-for-emergencies/types-of-emergencies/fire/fire-safety-for-kids.html
Draw a layout of your house and plan different escape routes if there was a fire in your house.
Sports
Research Pete Alonso, the baseball player that Ronny met. https://www.sikids.com/kid-reporter/mets-rookie-pete-alonso-my-path-pros
Research Jeremy Lin, the basketball player mentioned in one student’s poem.
https://playersbio.com/jeremy-lin/
MakerSpace Activities:
Draw the one thing you’d save along with where it is located in your home like the illustration on pages 16 and 17.
Write and then illustrate your own sijo poem. https://www.masterclass.com/articles/how-to-write-sijo-poetry#what-is-sijo-poetry
Lots of extra tea equals tea dyeing a t-shirt.
https://createwhimsy.com/projects/how-to-dye-fabric-with-tea/
Make meteorite playdough: http://www.doodlesandjots.com/2015/08/12/this-summer-rocks-meteorites/
Make a snake skeleton craft (0:59): https://www.yout-ube.com/watch?v=o9HLVRwU_k4&feature=youtu.be
Make a fire truck:https://www.craftingjeannie.com/fire-truck-craft-template/
Discussion Questions:
What do you hold dear enough to be the one thing you would save?
Why would you pick this item?
One student talks about the books he would save. What book would you save? Why?
One student says his answer to the question of the one thing he’d save would change depending on whether it is day or night. Can you think of other things that would change depending on whether it was day or night? Make a list of things that would change depending on time of day. Why would they change?
What do you think the student on page 7 is thinking about when she says
“Things that you can’t go buy another one, that's what you gotta save.”? Is she right? Why?
The student on page 18 took a negative and turned it into a positive. She had to buy four boxes of tea to get her friend a kitty, but she used the tea to make her friend a present. How have you changed a negative situation into a positive one?
How does the student who would not want to take anything from his house make you feel? Why?
One student wants to save a plaque from a science fair because of all the hard work she and her friends put into earning it. A second student wants to save a pair of shoes because of what he had to sacrifice to save the money to buy them. What have you worked this hard to accomplish?
The class has a motto, “We Protect, Affect, Respect One Another!” What does this motto mean to you?
Ron on page 11 and the student on page 29 and 30 are both saving the program from a baseball game played by the Mets. Which one of them had the best reason for saving the program? Why?
Charles wants to take his bedroom rug so that he could save someone and be a hero. He says “if there’s a chance to be a hero, I’m gonna be ready.” Is wanting to be a hero a good reason to save someone? Why?
One student wants to save a shell she got at the beach because it reminds her of the ocean, “waves washing out the bad stuff in my head.” What washes the bad stuff out of your head? What comforts you?
One student had already been in a fire. Do you think Ms. Chang knew this when she made the assignment? Why? How do you think it made the student feel to have this assignment?
The student on page 45 wants to save their laptop. They say it “just makes sense to pick something expensive over something cheap.” What do you think?
Sophia’s brother died and she wants to save a box that contains his hair clippings. The student on page 50 wanted to save something to remind him of his dog Prince. He says “I know it’s way worse to lose a brother than a pet.” Is he right or wrong? Why?
Did reading the student’s responses make you change your idea of what you’d save like Johanna and Ms. Chang changed their minds? How?
Which student do you think had the best answer to the question? Why?
Why did Ms. Chang really assign this homework?
Book Talk Teasers:
Linda Sue Park talks about The One Thing You’d Save at OLA (4:29): https://www.yout-ube.com/watch?v=SHK07uFuKOM
Read Alikes:
Novels in Verse
Grimes, Nikki. Poems in the Attic. A young girl learns much about her mother as she reads a collection of poems written before she was born that capture her mother's memories of living around the world and growing up as a child of an Air Force serviceperson. Includes author's note, list of Air Force bases, and explanation of the free verse and tanka poetry forms used. (NoveList)
Grimes, Nikki. When Gorilla Goes Walking. In this story told in a series of rhyming poems, Gorilla the cat enjoys answering the telephone, eating soul food, and sharing mischievous adventures with her young owner. (NoveList)
Heidbreder, Robert. Rooster Summer. Two siblings start each day with a rooster wakeup call during a summer spent at a farm, where they go about their daily tasks. (NoveList)
Shovan, Laura. The Last Fifth Grade of Emerson Elementary. "A story told in verse from multiple perspectives of the graduating fifth grade class of Emerson Elementary. The kids join together to try to save their school from being torn down to make way for a supermarket"--. (NoveList)
Wissinger, Tamera Will. Gone Fishing. In this novel told through poems, nine-year-old Sam loves fishing with his dad, so when his pesky little sister horns in on their fishing trip, he is none too pleased. Includes primer on rhyme, poetry techniques, rhythm, stanzas, and poetic forms. (NoveList)
Reviews:
Park, Linda Sue. The One Thing You’d Save. Illustrated by Robert Sae-Heng. Clarion, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishing, 2021.
Booklist
The One Thing You’d Save.
By Linda Sue Park. Illus. by Robert Sae-Heng.
Mar. 2021. 72p. Clarion, $16.99 (9781328515131). Grades 3-6.
REVIEW. First published September 7, 2021 (Booklist Online).
Newbery Medalist Park captures the unique voices of a middle-grade classroom in her latest book inspired by traditional Korean sijo poetry. Ms. Chang has an assignment for each of her students: there’s an emergency at home—a fire—and you’re only allowed to save one object. Pets and family are safe. What follows is a lively dialogue of diverse children’s voices, full of humor and emotion, about the objects they choose to save. They run the gamut from the practical, like cell phones and laptops, to those with deeper meaning, like a locket of hair from a baby brother who died at age four. This is not Park’s first sijo-inspired book, and an author’s note at the end gives more information about the poetic structure. This is Sae-Heng’s debut as an illustrator, and his quaint black-and-white drawings convey a deeper understanding of each object’s place in the child’s heart. Questions Asked (2017), by Jostein Gaarder, is another introspective book that poses meaningful questions about life to young readers. —Bobbie Peyton
Used with the permission of Booklist https://www.booklistonline.com/
Book Trailer
Author Interview
Linda Sue Park.mp4