The Lightning Thief

Ricky Riordan

Before you begin…….

Look through the chapter titles. Which ones intrigue you? Pick three titles of chapters and write a prediction about what you think will happen in that chapter and why you think that will happen.

1. _____________________________________

Chapter Title

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Prediction and why

2. _____________________________________

Chapter Title

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Prediction and why

3. _____________________________________

Chapter Title

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Prediction and why

Chapter 1

Mrs. Dodds “changes” during the chapter. Please visualize Mrs. Dodds pre- incident in the museum and during her battle with Percy. On the back, create a flow map that shows the progression of changes. Finally, use the flow map to write a simple paragraph explaining your visualizing, using specific examples from the text

Mrs. Dodds as a regular teacher.

Mrs. Dodds in “true” form.

Chapter 1 (continued)

Mr. Brunner tells Percy there is no Mrs. Dodds. How would you feel if you were certain somebody existed and was with you, but everyone else around you denied it? What would you do to prove the truth to yourself and others?

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Now that you’ve finished writing your ideas down, go back and check that you put your “best” thought into your writing. See if you can add an idea that helps someone else understand your thinking (SPECIFICTY) J

Wow! I’m really proud of you! Now all you have to do is go back and check your conventions of print.

Did you check your spelling ((especially the homophones/homonyms)?

Did you check your capitalization and punctuation?

Chapter 2

After reading the chapter and viewing the video clip, think about the Three Old Ladies. Do you think they are “villains” or “heroes” or neither? Explain your thinking and your evidence from the story. Create a double bubble comparing the portrayal of the Fates in The Lightning Thief and in Greek myths.

Chapter 3

Visualize Gabe. What words would you use to describe him as a character (character traits vs. physical traits) Make a character map depicting Gabe with 3 character traits. You must cite evidence from the text to support your thinking.

Chapter 4

1)Percy has had a terrible day. His best friend is a goat, he’s battled a Minotaur, and his mother has died trying to protect him. What would you do if you were Percy? Do you think Percy understands and believes what is happening to him? Why or why not? What evidence does the text provide, that supports your answer?

2)Riordan writes in the first person, telling the story through Percy’s eyes. How does this help you as a reader understand the story better?

Extend) Rewrite the day from the perspective of Grover

Slow down SpeedyJ Did you explain your thinking as clearly as possible? Did you add details that support your ideas?

Did you check your conventions of print? Capitals, punctuation, even spelling?

Chapter 5

When Percy drank the potion that helped him healed it tasted like his mom’s chocolate chip cookies. If you were to drink the potion, what would it taste like to you? Why?

Mr. D. is head of Camp Half Blood. Do you think he likes his job? Why or why not? What clues does Riordan give you that supports your thinking? How did Mr. D. end up with his job? How does this impact his leadership?

Stop and Think!

The Lightning Thief is full of interesting and unusual vocabulary based on mythological characters. Please review chapters 1-5 and pick 10 interesting words. Your job throughout the book will be to create a glossary of terms to help someone who hasn’t read the book understand the words.

You will fill out a glossary page for each word, which can be found at the end of the packet.

I bet you’ll pick some really great words, and I hope you have fun visualizing themJ!

Figurative Language Quest:

Author’s often use figurative language to help the reader understand the characters, or the story better. This style of writing adds voice and sentence fluency to the writing. What examples of figurative language can you find?

Find an example of each style of figurative language, then explain what it means, and how it enhances the story:

Idioms:

Similes:

Metaphors:

Chapter 6

What if one of your teachers was actually a mythical animal? What would you do? How would you find out? Create a comic strip depicting the discovery of one of your teachers as a “creature”.

Chapter 6 (Cont.)

Which house would you like to live in and why? Research the god of that house, and evaluate if you think Riordan did a good job of creating a cabin that fit with that god. Support your thinking with evidence from the text and outside sources (internet, readings, Greek myths, video clips,etc)

Wow! I’m really proud of you! Now all you have to do is go back and check your conventions of print.

Did you check your spelling ((especially the homophones/homonyms)?

Did you check your capitalization and punctuation?

Chapter 7

Do the Gods sound like they make good parents? What are their strengths? What are their weaknesses? Write a persuasive paragraph supporting your position, and provide reasons that are supported by facts and details.

Extension: Percy dreams of a father who “gets” him. Write a want ad for Percy’s father:

Stop and Think!

Who is your favorite character so far and why?

Draw your favorite character and make a character trait map describing him or her, and then support your evidenceJ

Chapter 8

What are the Camp Half Blood’s rules for Capture the Flag? Create a “rule list” so anyone could play the game:

***Extend- Create your own game, based on the Greek myths

What important discovery does Percy make while playing? How do you think this will change his life?

Chapter 9

Percy knows who his father is, yet he is miserable. Why? Would you feel the same way? ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Many of the characters in Greek myths have become the foundation for words in our language. For instance, Herculean comes from the character “Hercules” meaning a huge a challenging task. What words stem from “Poseidon” ? Check other languages as wellJ Extend- what other words come from Greek myths- see if you can find them.

Of all the Oracle’s predictions, which one do you think is the most important, and why?

Chapter 10

Great vocabulary check- find 10 words from chapters 6-10 that you want to add to your glossary at the end of the packetJ

Chapter 11

Using the strategy, “Somebody, Wanted, But, So” and summarizing strategies to write a summary of the book so far. End with a prediction based upon evidence from the text.

Chapter 12

Why do you think the dead were urging Percy to wake up? What do you think would have happened if he hadn’t woken up soon?

Don’t be afraid to use your imagination, take a risk! Predictions are always just an idea, nothing is set in stoneJ

Chapter 13

Despite Percy having some pretty rotten feelings about his dad, he thinks of his as the Chimera is telling him to jump in the water. Do you think his dad will help him? Why or why not? **Extend- research Chimera. Evaluate how Riordan has taken the features and characteristics of Chimera, and modernized them.

Chapter 14

Write a newspaper headline and the first paragraph of an article explaining the events around Percy’s plunge into the water and attempts to capture him.

Chapter 15

Have you ever been on a waterslide? Draw a waterslide to create a storyboard showing the events in Chapter 15J

Chapter 16

The Lotus Casino sounds like a fun place for a kid. What would your Lotus Casino have in it? Visualize your dream get away and label the partsJ

Chapter 16 (Cont.)

Although the Lotus Casino was an awesome place, do you think there was something sinister there? Why or why not?

Have you ever read another story where people got so caught up in having fun that it became dangerous, or they forgot their original responsibilities?

Vocabulary Builder!

Stop and review the previous chapters, find 10 that you found interesting or challenging and add them to your glossary.

Chapter 17

Compare the original story of Procrustes to Percy’s experience with Crusty. How are they the same and how are they different?

Procrustes (Προκρούστης) "the stretcher"[dubious – discuss] or "the one who hammers out", also known as Damastes (Δαμαστής) "subduer" and Polypaemon Πολυπαίμων "harming much"[dubious – discuss], is a figure from Greek mythology. He was a son of Poseidon and a bandit from Attica, with a stronghold in the hills outside Eleusis. There, he had an iron bed into which he invited every passerby to lie down. If the guest proved too tall, he would amputate the excess length; victims who were too short were stretched on the rack until they were long enough. Nobody ever fit in the bed because it was secretly adjustable: Procrustes would stretch or shrink it upon sizing his victims from afar. Procrustes continued his reign of terror until he was captured by Theseus, who "fitted" Procrustes to his own bed and cut off his head and feet (since Theseus was a stout fellow, the bed had been set on the short position). Killing Procrustes was the last adventure of Theseus on his journey from Troezen to Athens.

Chapter 18

Make a cartoon showing Cerberus playing with Annabeth. What are each of them thinking? Use think bubbles to explain each characters’ perspectives.

***Extend- Many words related to the brain use the root cere- find 10 and explain what they mean. How could the character Cerberus have gotten his name?

Example: Cerebellum- a portion of the brain used to control movement and balance

Chapter 19

The title of the chapter was “We Find Out the Truth, Sort Of”. Do you think that was a fitting title for the chapter? What was the truth?

Percy had to choose between his friends, his quest, and his mother, needless to say a tough choice. Have you ever had to make a really tough choice? What was it, and did you feel okay about your decision afterwards?

Chapter 20

What do you think the thing that stopped Ares was? Will it play a role in coming stories? Explain why or why not.

Chapter 21

Pretend you are Percy and buy a post card while you are visiting Mount Olympus. Write a letter home telling your family about your visit thereJ

Front of Post Card

Chapter 22

Were you surprised by Luke’s betrayal? Do you sympathize at all with Luke ? Can you understand things from his point of view?

Do you think Percy made the right choice to go home and be with his mother? Why or why not?

Percy’s learning difficulties become strengths for him in different life circumstances. How can weaknesses be used as strengths in people’s lives?

ClosingJ

Pick and choose which questions you would like to answer:

1. Which character surprised you the most and why?

2. Percy had to make several tough decisions. Think about a tough decision you’ve had to make in your own life and compare it to Percy’s.

3. Annabeth decided to give her family (her father) another chance. Why do you think she did that?

4. What was your favorite moment in the story and why?

5. Which character would you most like to be friend’s with, and why?

I am so proud of you! Keep up all the great work! J