It tells the story of one slaves mission to teach other slaves the illegal skill of reading. The resolution is not always happy, but it does complete the story. Sarny, a female slave at the waller plantation, first sees nightjohn when he is brought there with a rope around his neck, his body covered in scars. In the novel, a former escaped slave named john teaches a young girl named sarney how to read. As part of editing, have students diagram their own creative writing to find major plot points. Police uncovered a plot to assassinate the prime minister. Her job is to take care of the white familys son as well as spitting tobacco on the roses to keep bugs away. I think sarney and the other slaves sleep in a barn or something like that, and get whipped in the. Here are 7 tips for plotting a story that makes structural sense, displays a strong sense of cause and effect and snags readers attention. Gary paulsens nightjohn is a middle gradeyoung adult novel about a twelveyearold girl in the time of slavery in the american south. The books plot revolves around a woman who is searching for her missing sister.
Sarny is drawn to nightjohn when she learns that he had escaped north to freedom, only to voluntarily return to the south. Nightjohn plot graph gary paulsen 68 by novels and stories. Characterization the personalities and decisions of the characters plot what happened the events, and. Nightjohn has escaped more than once, but courageously returns to share his knowledge with those who have no way of knowing the world beyond their. This worksheet has a staircase pattern that moves from the bottom left to the upper right of the paper.
Secondly, you need to be able to incorporate these elements in your own writing. I would like to know the characteristics for each one. Nightjohn is a story of a young 12 year old girl, sarny, under 19th century slavery. This novel and assignment will be divided into 5 chunks. The book nightjohn by gary paulsen is about a girl named sarny who is enslaved on a plantation. When a young slave named sarny allison jones meets the literate nightjohn carl lumbly, he risks his life to give her the ability to read and write. To know things, for us to know things, is bad for them. In the opening we are shown that sarnys mother is sold away after sarny turns out to. Gathered there are slaves who have come to meet nightjohn and to learn to read. It is about slavery in the american south shortly before the time of the american civil war.
Nightjohn quotes by gary paulsen goodreads share book. Nightjohn, a young adult novel by gary paulsen 1993, takes place shortly before the civil war on a southern plantation. Nightjohn is a slave who is brought to the waller plantation. And twelveyearold sarny is willing to take the risk to learn. This study guide consists of approximately 24 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of nightjohn. Sep 12, 2016 first, let me clarify that im not an expert in literature, but i d like to think i have at lest some moderate experiences when it comes to plots and their meaning. A man named nightjohn who is also enslaved on the same plantation started to teach sarny how to read and write. Make sure to answer all of the parts of the questions.
Owner of the slaves, owns a plantation, whips slaves and searches for runaways. It is a grim story of heartache and punishment, but also a story of hope. Her chief duties at the plantation of clel waller are serving at table, spitting tobacco juice on roses to prevent bugs, and secretly conveying intimate messages between wallers wife, callie, and dr. Sarny writes the other pass for the other slave that wants to runaway with him so they can be together peacefully.
It was first published in 1993, and later, it was made. Have students illustrate exposition, rising action, conflict, climax, falling action, and resolution, in a sixcell storyboard. Jan 01, 1993 nightjohn was a short and easy book for me to read. She is a twelveyearold slave who has higher aspirations for herself. The tale begins with sarny, a young african american slave girl whos learning average everyday slave life. The story is narrated by sarny, a slave on the waller plantation.
This activity was created by a quia web subscriber. The falling action is everything that happens as a result of the climax, including wrappingup of plot points, questions being answered, and character development resolution. Nightjohn plot graph gary paulsen 68 by novels and. Comprehension by chapter, vocabulary challenges, creative reading response activities and projects, tests, and much more. For your reference, we provided these nightjohn quotes with page numbers using the following version of the book. When the two slaves have escaped waller comes into the church and threatens to shoot all of the slaves. Nightjohn is a book about slavery set before the time of the civil war, that was written by gary paulsen. Nightjohn by gary paulsen chapter 3 summary and analysis. I appreciate there being a romantic plot line in what would be considered a slave movie. Nightjohn when he is brought to the plantation with a rope around his neck, his body covered with scars from many beatings. Edwards award given by the american library association for his lifetime achievement in young adult literature. By gary paulsen simile exercise what is a slave narrative. These details are woven into the story without it seeming heavy handed. The book begins in 1930 with sarny now at age ninetyfour, in a home for old folks outside of dallas, texas, reflecting on the long, rich life she couldnt have imagined would be hers back in those early days.
Free nightjohn study unit worksheets for teachers to print. My class is reading nightjohn and i think the plot of it is on a plantation deep in the south. Aug 31, 2011 sarny, a female slave at the waller plantation, first sees nightjohn when he is brought there with a rope around his neck, his body covered in scars. The book revolves around the prohibition of teaching slaves how to read. I did like all of the detail, but the way it was written messed with me at first.
It tells the story of one slaves mission to teach other slaves the illegal skill of. Nightjohn by gary paulsen questions, vocabulary, movie. This lesson plan may be used to help students learn about nightjohn by gary paulsen. Nightjohn compare and contrast by annie donahoe on prezi. Sarny is intrigued but knows better than to ask any questions.
Get an answer for who are the characters in nightjohn. Related from the perspective of a young female slave named sarny, the narrative centers on the return of an escaped slave, nightjohn, who intends to teach others to read and write. Gary paulsen is the distinguished author of many critically acclaimed books for young people, including three newbery honor books. Make sure to answer all of the parts of the questions most have more than one part. He is unique in that he once escaped to the north, but came back to teach slaves to read. Characterization the personalities and decisions of the characters plot. Nightjohn is a young adult novel by gary paulsen, first published in 1993. Students will answer questions about the story, analyze characters, and research topics related to the. Betterlessons unique formula allows us to bring you highquality coaching, a professional learning lab, and a learnbydoing process that embeds pd into the classroom. The chapter begins with sarny introducing herself to us.
Some fun ways to teach this lesson using storyboard that. What might be some powerful similes to describe waller, the plantation, slave life, mammy, sarny. Nightjohn is a 1996 american television film directed by charles burnett. A searing picture of slavery, sometime in the 19th century at an unspecified place in the south. Gary paulsens nightjohn is an epic tale about slavery in the the south before the emancipation proclamation. A life remembered rectifies that by putting more meat on the storys bones. This book is about a slave named sarny, and she has always wondered what it was like to read. Sarny, young enough not to have experienced the rape that will come inexorably with child bearing age, tells how she learned to read, and at what cost.
We see them get married and eventually runaway when they find out that egypt is pregnant. This onepage guide includes a plot summary and brief analysis of nightjohn by gary paulsen. Nightjohn by gary paulsen overdrive rakuten overdrive. However, he doesnt sell her, as a promise has been made, so her mother is sold after a few years instead. The plot creates a desire for the reader to go on reading by absorbing them in the middle of the story, ensuring they want to know what happens next. What is a summary of chapter one of nightjohn by gary paulsen. Nightjohn, by gary paulsen, is a young adult novel set in the precivil war american south. Write the answers to the questions below and on the back side. The novel is set on the waller plantation in the southern united states in the early 1800s. John or nightjohn as he is called, slips into the slave barracks at night when the whites of the plantation are sleeping, and attempts to spread empowering knowledge to his people. Comparing and contrasting the nightjohn book and movie. The film is about a young slave girl named sarny, played by allison jones, who lives a hopeless life on a southern plantation.
I loved the romance plot line between outlaw and egypt. This detailed literature summary also contains topics for discussion on nightjohn by gary paulsen. The climax is the most exciting point of the story, and is a turning point for the plot or goals of the main character falling action. Teaching ideas interdisciplinary connections historycivil rightshave students check reference books for historical details of life in the antebellum south and information about sally hemings, to whom nightjohn is dedicated. This was important to him because he wanted enslaved people to be able to write about their slave experience. Her master clel waller is angry, saying that a boy wouldve been worth more. Nightjohn ebook by gary paulsen 9780307804228 rakuten kobo. Write a 5 essay comparing what is similar and contrasting what is different in the book nightjohn and the movie nightjohn. Under a picture of a horse, sarny is excited to see a combination of letters that she recognizes. He began spending hours alone in the basement of his apartment building, reading one book after another.
A small piece of ground, generally used for a specific purpose. Sarny, a 12yearold slave girl in the antebellum south, faces a relatively hopeless life. Set in the 1850s, gary paulsens groundbreaking new novel is unlike anything else the awardwinning author has written. Knowing that the penalty for reading is dismemberment, nightjohn still returned to slavery to teach others how to read. Nightjohn by paulsen, gary used books and rare books. Read nightjohn by gary paulsen available from rakuten kobo. Gary paulsens nightjohn, published in 1993, gives middle grade and high school students a realistic depiction of the worst of southern slaveowners during the time just before the. The plot leads to the climax, but by gradually releasing the story in order to maintain readers interest. Turn and talk idea generation exercise think contextually in terms of geography, history, setting, etc.
Free nightjohn worksheets and literature unit for teachers. Learning how to plot a novel means first understanding the elements of great plots. Through all the pain and heartache there was also love. Wallers place, the main character, 12 years old, very quiet, gets caught writing in the dirt, is learning how to read and write from john. Plot definition, a secret plan or scheme to accomplish some purpose, especially a hostile, unlawful, or evil purpose. In this somewhat contrived sequel to nightjohn, set in postcivil war new orleans, 94yearold sarny reflects on her first few years as an emancipated slave. Nightjohn by gary paulsen is set in the south before the civil war. She was raised by mammy, another slave whose job it was to care for all the young children. Nightjohn has a selfimposed missionto teach slaves how to read and write. We get to wanting and when we get to wanting its bad for them.
Knowing that the penalty for reading is dismemberment nightjohn still retumed to slavery to teach others how to read. Beginning at the bottom left of the page, students will number each major event in the literary work and write a short description of the event. Sarny is the protagonist in nightjohn by gary paulsen. If nightjohn had all the dry makings of literary excellence but was too sparse to fulfill its potential, sarny.
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