Everything on a Waffle

2002 Newbery Medal Honor Book
Author: Polly Horvath
Copyright: Polly Horvath, 2001
Publisher: Scholastic, Inc.

Reading Level:
     Ages: 10-14
     Grade Level Equivalent: 5.9
     Lexile Measure: 950L

Five keywords/phrases to describe the book:
Hope, inspirational, friendship, family, entertaining

Suggested Delivery: Individual read

Summary: This novel is set in a small fishing village in Canada, and centers around an eleven-year-old girl, Primrose Squarp. Her parents are lost at sea during a typhoon, and Primrose refuses to believe that they are dead, regardless of what the rest of the community is telling her. After living with her elderly neighbor, Miss Perfidy, for a while after her parents' disappearance, custody of Primrose is changed to her Uncle Jack, with whom Primrose has a limited relationship. Busy spending his time trying to turn this small village into real estate gold, Jack does not have much time for Primrose, which pushes her to hang out at a local eatery, The Girl on the Red Swing, where each item on the menu is served on a waffle. Primrose befriends the owner, Kate Bowzer, and spend a lot of her time in the restaurant, sharing her life's troubles and struggles with Kate. Following a series of unfortunate accidents involving Primrose, she is removed from Uncle Jack's custody and placed with an elderly couple, still patiently awaiting her parents' return. As the community becomes more concerned about Primrose's emotional state of mind, she never loses hope that her parents will return. Following Primrose on this journey is both heartbreaking and exciting, and students will love the surprise ending that no one saw coming.

Vocabulary:
1) Typhoon (page 3)
2) Summon (page 9)
3) Fortuitous (page 9)
4) Imposition (page 11)
5) Bereavement (page 14)
6) Pacifist (page 18)
7) Pell-mell (page 31)
8) Discombobulated (page 33)
9) Repertoire (page 38)
10) Fatal (page 52)
11) Convalesce (page 71)
12) Encumbrance (page 74)
13) Stymied (page 102)
14) Notoriously (page 104)
15) Anaphylactic shock (page 111)
16) Guffawed (page 120)
17) Sentiment (page 132)
18) Emaciated (page 144)

Electronic Resources:

Polly Horvath - This is the author, Polly Horvath's, official website. Students can visit this site if they want to learn more about the author. They can read about the author, her other books, and awards that her books have won. Students can also browse photos, read about recent news pertaining to Polly Horvath, and have access to contact information for Polly Horvath. If students loved Everything on a Waffle this is a great place for them to go to learn more.

Quiz - This is a short, 25 questions quiz that teachers can have students take after reading Everything on a Waffle to see if students understood the story and its plot. Teachers can administer this as an informal assessment just to assess comprehension, or can use it as a grade in their grade books. The easy, multiple choice question format provides clarity and should be easy for students to complete if they read the book as assigned.

Comprehension Strategies:
Before: Have students complete a vocabulary search prior to starting the book. This can be done as a class, in small groups, or independently. Have students look up the words provided above in the dictionary, and write down their definitions to refer to during reading. This may help them comprehend a sentence or paragraph that they would not be able to understand without knowing the definition.

During: Each chapter in this book has an interesting and unique title. These titles relate to what happens in the chapter, and give you a preview of what's to come. After each chapter in the book, have students write a short explanation as to why the chapter is titled the way that it is. This will ensure that students understood what happened in each chapter, and collectively, what is happening throughout the story.

After: Have students fill out an exit slip before transitioning into the next book. The title, Everything on a Waffle, suggests the story is about waffles. Although everything on at The Girl on the Red Swing is served on waffles, that is not exactly why the book is titled as it is. There is an underlying meaning to the title, and the exit slip students will fill out will center around the question, "Why do you think the book is called Everything on a Waffle?" After students fill out their exit slips and hand them in, have an open class discussion on some of the answers the class provided.

Writing: Throughout the book, Primrose provides recipes for different food items she encounters. In order to replicate the food item, a recipe has to be followed exactly, and in order for it to be followed exactly, the author needs to write a clear but precise recipe for the chef to follow. Have students go home and find a recipe, either online, from a cookbook, or from a family member, to bring into class. Then, in class, in their own words, have students write down their recipe and instructions to follow to make it. They can then decorate the page and even draw a picture of their food item. Compile these recipes into a classroom cookbook for students to take home and make with their families.

Citation:

Horvath, P. (2001). Everything on a waffle. New York: Scholastic, Inc..