GRANDFATHER GANDHI by Arun Gandhi and Bethany Hegedus

GRANDFATHER GANDHI by Arun Gandhi and Bethany Hegedus

DISCUSSION PROMPTS FOR USE IN THE CLASSROOM

Developed by BookPeople with AISD’S Social and Emotional Learning Specialists

Please review the following as discussion prompts and choose at least 5 to use as you read Grandfather Gandhi. NOTE: The quotes in bold indicate the page or pages the questions have been designed to target.

NOTE: The questions in this document have been organized chronologically.

ILLUSTRATION NOTES THROUGHOUT:

1.  Notice how expressive the illustrations of the characters’ faces are. Can you look closely at body and face clues as we read to help identify how the characters are feeling and how those feelings change throughout the story?

2.  Pay attention to the role played by shadows throughout the book and how the shadows change. Talk about what you think they mean.

3.  Pay attention to the role of the yarn throughout the book. How does the yarn change and how do those changes reflect what’s happening in the story?

a.  SUGGESTION: You might show a piece, ball, or roll of yarn as you share this question

“We arrived at Sevagram…”

1.  How do you think Arun feels as he arrives? Why do you think he chose to hang back from the others?

2.  Arun and the others show respect to their grandfather by touching his feet. Who are the elders in your life? (family?) How do you show respect to your elders?

3.  Why do you think people show respect to people who are older?

4.  HIGH LEVEL QUESTION: It might seem funny to us to touch someone’s feet out of respect. Can you think of any traditions you have that might seem funny to someone from another culture?

“Grandfather gathered us to him in a big hug…”

1.  Arun felt proud that his grandfather was impressed by his walking. What does it mean to feel proud of something? Has there been a time that you have felt proud of an accomplishment?

2.  Arun feels especially happy that his grandfather feels proud of him. Is there someone you want to be proud of you? What would you want them to be most proud of you for?

“That evening I floated to dinner …”

1.  How has Arun’s face changed from the previous illustration to this one? What do you think has changed about the way he is feeling?

2.  The author uses very descriptive language in the dinner scene, describing many noises and smells that are new to Arun. How does being in a new environment make you feel? Have you ever felt overwhelmed by new experiences?

EXTENSION ACTIVITY: After reading: Return to this section of the book and re read.

1.  Activity: With a small group write a descriptive paragraph about a time when you were in a new environment and how it felt. Use descriptive words and show the reader what you experienced.

“For the rest of the night…”

BEFORE READING: Discuss the vocabulary word “pressured.” Then when you get to this word, students will be better able to visually understand the word pressure in context.

1.  Arun’s dinner sits “like a lump in his stomach.” Why did his stomach feel bad? Do you think the food is bothering him, or do you think it is something else?

2.  What does he mean when Arun says that the Gandhi name was a lot to live up to? What do you think he feels is expected of him?

a.  Can you share a time that you have felt pressure? Have you ever felt pressured by other people’s expectations? How did you handle it?

3.  Arun thinks: “I had passed my first test, but there would be others. What if I failed?”

a.  Turn and tell a partner about a time you felt worried about failing. How did you handle that feeling?

b.  What do you tell yourself when you are trying to calm down?

c.  What is something that Arun could think to himself to help calm his worry?

“The next day, everyone woke…”

1.  Arun says that the “peace of prayer felt far away.” What does it mean that it felt far away? Has a goal ever felt far away or unattainable to you? What did you do to try to achieve it or reach success?

EXTENSION ACTIVITY: What goals have we set for ourselves this school year? Do they feel far away? What can we do to break our goal into small chunks so it doesn’t seem so far away.

“I was glad that when the sky turned the deep orange of a tangerine…”

2.  How does this page illustrate the different perspectives of the characters and their different roles in the family?

3.  Grandfather Gandhi is such a respected elder, but he has chores too. Why do you think he chooses to help?

4.  What would happen if someone in the family decided not to help?

5.  What are some of the roles that you play in your family, school, or community?

“After chores it was time for lessons…”

1.  Look at Arun’s face and consider the situation he is in. How do you think Arun is feeling on this page?

a.  Talk about a time you’ve felt embarrassed about something. How did you react?

b.  What could Arun say to himself to help himself deal with his feelings?

c.  Do you ever say anything to yourself when you’re trying to deal with feelings like this?

2.  “But the only game anyone was interested in was soccer…”

a.  Have you ever been in a situation in which no one shared your interests? What was that like? What did you do?

b.  What are some ways that groups of people can all have fun even when they have different interests?

“I set off after Grandfather…”

1.  How do you think Arun feels when Grandfather takes the time to listen to him?

a.  Why is it important to actively listen to someone?

b.  How can Arun tell that Grandfather is actively listening?

c.  How do you feel when people actively listen to you talk about something that’s on your mind?

d.  How can we show people we are listening to them?

2.  Grandfather tells Arun to give it time and that “I have faith.”

a.  What is faith? We often hear about faith in religious contexts, but is it only a religious feeling?

b.  What does it mean to have faith in someone? Can you also have faith in yourself?

c.  Can having faith help us view difficult situations more positively?

“He said no more …”

1.  Look at Arun’s face and consider the situation he is in. How do you think he is feeling on this page? What is the significance of the black yarn behind Arun’s head?

2.  When he gets angry at his pencil, is it really about his pencil? What do you think he is really feeling angry about?

3.  The previous page ended on such a positive note, with Grandfather’s expression of faith. Why do Arun’s feelings change when his Grandfather is no longer with him?

a.  How do you think Grandfather Gandhi sees Arun or feels about Arun?

b.  How do you think Arun thinks his Grandfather feels about him?

c.  Are the answers to these two questions different? If so, why do you think they are different?

4.  Do you think the way Arun talks to himself is positive or negative? How do you think that affects how he feels?

a.  Could talking to himself in a more positive way change his perspective about what’s really happening in the story or about his relationship with his Grandfather?

b.  What do you think Arun could say to himself to help him calm his emotions down or to help him find a more positive perspective?

5.  Why is Arun so unhappy here?

a.  What expectations do you think he has placed on himself?

b.  What expectations do you think he has placed on his relationship with Grandfather Gandhi?

c.  Are his expectations realistic?

d.  Talk about a time when you felt like you were facing unrealistic expectations or expectations you didn’t know how to live up to. How did that make you feel? How did you handle your emotions?

“I didn’t want to calm down…”

1.  Arun wanted to throw the rock, but he chose not to. Why did he make this choice?

2.  Do you think Arun is really angry with the boy? Why do you think he’s feeling so mad?

3.  Look at Arun’s shadow on this page. How does this illustration represent how Arun is feeling? What does the black yarn represent in this art?

“Straight to Grandfather’s hut…”

1.  Look how Arun is illustrated as standing inside Grandfather’s shadow. What do the shadows mean here?

a.  What does it mean that Arun stands within the larger shadow of his Grandfather?

b.  Have you ever felt that you were standing in someone else’s shadow?

2.  Arun says “I’d never live up to the Mahatma.”

a.  Arun has a lot to live up to! How do you think this makes him feel?

b.  Have you ever felt that you had to live up to an example set by someone else?

c.  Have you ever felt that you were expected to be someone you didn’t know you could be?

3.  At the end of this page Arun says “I’d never be at peace.” What do you think it means to be at peace? How do you know if you’re at peace?

Grandfather’s Story:

1.  How does Grandfather’s story make Arun reflect on his own situation?

a.  Does his story make you think about anything in your own life?

2.  Grandfather tells Arun that even he feels anger. Does that mean that it’s okay to feel anger?

a.  How do you think that feeling anger can sometimes make us behave in negative ways?

b.  Do you think it’s possible to feel anger and behave peacefully at the same time?

i.  Is it easy to do? Can you think of any ways that you have ever helped yourself do that?

3.  Grandfather says that anger can turn darkness into light. Can you think of any ways that anger can be helpful?

a.  There are many historical moments when people have felt anger and turned it into a vehicle for change. How can anger and passion lead to positive actions?

i.  What kind of feelings make us feel charged and powerful and what kind of feelings make us feel calm and tranquil?

ii. What kind of choices do you think people need to make to turn their anger to positive change versus negative behavior?

4.  Grandfather tells Arun that “we can all work to use our anger, instead of letting it use us.” What does that mean?

a.  What happens when we let our anger use us?

b.  Can you think of any moments from the story in which Arun let his anger use him? What could he have done differently?

5.  Grandfather talks about the difference between letting your anger be lightning and letting it shed light like a lamp. Lightning and lamps both produce light. What is the difference between the light they make? What is Grandfather saying with this analogy?

6.  Why is Arun holding the thread while his Grandfather tells his story? How does the yarn connect to what Grandfather is talking about?

a.  What role do you think spinning yarn plays for Gandhi? How does it help him channel his emotions?

b.  What strategies do you use when you need help calming down?

“I did my best to live my life as light”

1.  Arun says he would choose over and over, from that moment on, to live his life as light. What do you think that means?

a.  What does it mean to choose to live in a certain way? Why do you think he says he had to choose over and over?

b.  As you think about what it might mean to live your life as light, can you think of any choices that would come up in your daily life?

i.  What kinds of choices might you face at school? At home? In the community?

2.  Look at the shadows on this page. What do you think they mean here?

a.  How do the shadows look different here than they have throughout the book?

b.  If you chose to live your life as light, what kind of shadow do you think you would cast on the world around you?

3.  Arun Gandhi has become an advocate for peace as an adult. After reading this story, how do you think he was able to channel his strong emotions into an opportunity to peacefully pursue positive change?

a.  Can you think of any strategies that you have used or can use in the future to keep anger from controlling you or pushing you towards negative behaviors?

The “Live Your Life as Light” Pledge

I pledge to listen to my anger, to see what it has to teach me.

I pledge to not bully or cause harm, with words or with weapons.

I pledge to look for the light, to see it in every situation.

I pledge to find my own unique tools and talents.

I pledge to forgive myself and others. I pledge to live my life as light.

GENERAL QUESTIONS:

1.  How do Arun’s emotions change from the beginning to the middle to the end?

a.  How do his changing feelings affect his behaviors in negative or positive ways?

2.  Think about how Arun talks to himself throughout the book. Do you think that what he says to himself is true?

a.  Does that help him or hurt him?

b.  How did Arun’s grandfather help him see himself differently?

c.  How could Arun use the way he talks to himself to match the messages his grandfather gives him?

d.  If Arun had more compassion for himself, how would his self talk sound?