Task: You will be going on an Internet search in order to learn more about author Jerry Spinelli. Follow the steps in the WebQuest – they will lead you to sources for this information. You are responsible for keeping up with this paper until the day it is due. Answer the following questions using the R and A from R.A.C.E.S.

Section One

http://www.jerryspinelli.com/newbery_004.htm

Read Jerry Spinelli’s FAQ’s (Frequently Asked Questions)

1.  What advice does he (Jerry Spinelli) give young writers?

2.  Where does he get his ideas for writing novels?

3.  Why does he write?

4.  Did he always want to be a writer?

http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/jerry-spinelli-interview-transcript

5.  What inspired Jerry Spinelli to write Maniac Magee?

6.  How many books has he written?

7.  Where is one place he wants to go to the most and why?

8.  What other interests does he have besides writing?

Section Two

“Jerry Spinelli: From Bat to Pencil” (Hard Copy – See the very last page of this packet for the text.)

1.  When and where was Jerry Spinelli born?

2.  How did Jerry Spinelli begin his writing career?

3.  What does Jerry Spinelli mean when he says he became an instant father?

4.  What do Jerry Spinelli and his wife share in common?

5.  Why is this piece titled “From Bat to Pencil”?

Section Three

https://www.teachingbooks.net/book_reading.cgi?id=4543

·  Play the audio and listen with your headphones.

1.  According to this section, where did Jerry Spinelli get the inspiration to write the book “Maniac Magee”?

2.  What is the one part of the story that Spinelli admits is “totally made up”?

3.  He says that the setting is loosely based around his own hometown. He continues by saying that “Maniac Magee” is “a sort of patchwork quilt of” what four items of his?

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4. Listen to the first few lines of “Maniac Magee” to answer the following question.

·  According to the audio, what are two things “They say” about Maniac Magee?

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Section Four

·  http://www.jerryspinelli.com/newbery_001.htm

·  Be sure to visit each tab when searching for the answers to the following questions. Also, take the quiz, even if you don’t know the answers initially. Then, record the correct answer. This will help you learn as you venture through the website.

1.  How old is Maniac Magee this year?

2.  What is Jerry’s favorite book that he has written?

3.  What is the name of Jerry’s new book?

4.  What does Jerry like to do besides write?

5.  What did Jerry want to be when he was second grade? (He dressed up like this one day for class.)

6.  How did Jerry escape the noise at his home with all of the kids?

7.  Which one of Jerry’s books won the Newbery Medal Award?

8.  What is Jerry’s favorite food?

9.  How long did it take Jerry to write Milkweed?

10.  When did Jerry have his first piece of literature published?