Noodles Makes a Boo-boo, Online Activities Guide

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Credits

Story Written by:
Marcia Thornton Jones & Debbie Dadey

Activities Written by:
Reta Broadway & Terri Darr Mclean

Illustrated by:
Chris Ware

Cover Design & Titling by:
Pyrographic Media

 

Chapter 6 - Surprise

Beginning Activities

  1. The events of Chapter 6 lead up to the climax, or turning point in the action, of the story. After you’ve read this chapter and before you go on to Chapter 7, make a prediction about what you think will happen as the story reaches its climax. Describe your thoughts in writing, and then come back to them to see how close or far off you were after you’ve finished reading the story.

  2. Practice making predictions using your newspaper’s comics. Ask a partner to cut out all but the last panel in a comic strip. Read the beginning panels and make a prediction about how the strip ends. Describe or draw your predicted ending and then compare your ending to the cartoonist’s final panel.

  3. When a writer creates a story, the writer uses descriptive words to set a tone for the story. The tone might be serious or it might be funny. It might be sad or it might be angry.

  4. What is the overall tone of "Noodles?" Compile a list of words from this and previous chapters that you think help set the tone.

  5. Talk about the feelings you get as you read the story. Does it make you feel happy? Sad? Angry?

  6. Find newspaper stories that make you want to laugh or cry or that make you sad or angry. Is there a difference in the way non-fiction and fiction writers set the tone of a story? Talk it over in small groups.

  7. Sounds as if Boo-Boo and Noodles might cause one problem too many! What’s a twin brother to do?

  8. Pretend you are a newspaper advice columnist like Dear Abby. Danny has written you a letter asking how he and his sister can get out of the mess Boo-Boo is causing in their lives. Write a letter offering your advice. Take turns reading your letters of advice to the class.

 

 

 

Mr. F explains the rules to Noodles.

 

Real Science!

Taking good notes is always a good idea, especially when you are conducting a scientific experiment. A logbook containing everything from project ideas to experimental data can save you time and energy. Plus, if you ever have to back up or start over (like Noodles), you’ll have your notes as a guide.

Challenging Activities

  1. Who is Mr. Falkner? How does he feel about surprises at science fairs? What does he mean when he says, "A science fair is not a birthday party?"

  2. Why does Noodles call her robot "the new and improved Boo-Boo?" (Read this sentence aloud. Does it sound funny to talk about an improved Boo-Boo?) Why does Danny have his doubts?

  3. How does Danny prepare for the science fair? What are some of the things he does that scientists must do when they conduct an experiment? If someone wanted to repeat Danny’s experiment to see if the same results happened again, how would Danny’s reports help?

  4. Why do you think Bailey whines when Noodles suggests letting Boo-Boo dry him? How do you think Bailey feels about the robot?

  5. Poor Bailey ends up with hundreds of ponytails tied with polka-dotted ribbon. Why does Boo-Boo do this to her?

 

   Danny explains his project to Mr. F.
 

For the Advanced Reader

  1. Look at the title for this chapter. How many surprises have the twins had so far in preparing for the science fair? Sometimes, as a reader, you have clues that make you expect something is going to happen. Did you think something dramatic was going to happen when Danny agrees to let Boo-Boo dry Bailey? How do the writers build up the feeling that another disaster is about to occur?

  2. "Our dog looked like an exploding dandelion puff." Does this sentence cause you to have a mental picture of how Bailey looks? Using like or as to compare two things is called a simile. Try your hand at writing similes by comparing Noodles and Danny to different things.

  3. This is a certain genre or type of story called fiction. What is the difference between fiction and non-fiction? Think about the chapters you have read so far. How do we know this story is fiction? What are some of the things that happen in this story that would not happen in real life? For example, in this chapter, Boo-Boo tries to make Bailey look pretty and puts her hair in ponytails. Would a real-life robot be likely to understand the concept of making a dog look pretty? Do you think a robot would equate ponytails tied with polka-dotted ribbons with being pretty?

  4. There is one more chapter to this story. How do you think it will end? Will Noodles win the blue ribbon at the science fair with her robot? Will there be one more disaster? Will Danny and Bailey get in trouble over the robot’s actions again? Make your predictions before you read the final chapter.

 

   Bailey gets his hair dried.

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