Winter Mentor Text for Teaching Theme

My 5th graders love when I read a picture book to them as part of a reading lesson.  When the book has beautiful illustrations and involves dogs, even better! When I was a 3rd grade teacher, we learned a lot about the Artic, Alaska, and the Iditarod Sled Dog Race.  Using the book Togo, by Robert Blake to teach theme is a way for me to bring a little bit of Alaska into my 5th grade classroom.  

Togo tells the story of the 1925 Serum Run -  a race to get a lifesaving diphtheria vaccine from Anchorage, Alaska to Nome by train and a relay of dogsled teams.   The book focuses on the dogsled team of Leonhard Seppala and his lead dog Togo.  It's full of adventure and an amazing example of perseverance! 

Introducing the Book

I've found that many students are familiar with the story of Balto, the lead dog of another team in the 1925 Serum Run, and Disney recently made a movie about Togo, so students often have a surprising amount of background knowledge on the topic.  To begin to get them thinking about theme, you can ask students what they think some characteristics of sled dogs and mushers are.  If needed, show students some pictures from the book. 

Theme Lesson

While the events in Togo are all based on a true story, it is considered historical fiction, which makes it a great mentor text to teach theme. Theme is a big focus in 5th grade, and it can often be hard for my students to wrap their heads around.  I focus a lesson on theme on two major points:

• What challenges do the characters face in the story?  How do they respond to those challenges?
• What was the author's message?  What did they want you to learn? 

Before reading Togo, display the questions above for students - either on chart paper or the whiteboard.  As you read the book, stop periodically stop to discuss the challenges that Togo and Seppala are facing and how they are handling them.  I like to give students sticky notes that they can have on a clipboard or other hard surface, so they can jot down their ideas when I'm reading.  You could also have them write in reading notebook, etc. 

After you've finished the book, it's time for students to get to work completing the theme practice pages. The first two pages can be done cooperatively with partners or teams, and then students can write the constructed response independently. 

 Click HERE or on the picture below to get your copy of the Togo Theme Activity

• Page 1 - Students will think about the challenges faced in the story and the lesson the author wants the reader to learn.  They'll decided what they think the theme of the story is.
• Page 2 - Students will use the graphic organizer to jot down evidence from the text that supports their theme. 
• Page 3 - Students will write a constructed response using their work from the first two pages.

Extension Ideas & Helpful Links

• If your students enjoyed reading Togo, they may be interested in learning more about the Iditarod Sled Dog Race held every year in March.  The Iditarod website is full of information about the race, including how it's connected to the 1925 Serum Run. 
• The American Kennel Club has a page full of information about Togo.
• Want to build on this lesson? Use the Togo & Iditarod Paired Texts with your students.  This is great test prep, too! 
• See how I use the Iditarod in my classroom!

Giveaway Time! 

I'm teaming up with my friends from The Reading Crew to bring you Winter Mentor Text Ideas for the Content Areas. There are a bunch of great freebies available and the chance to win TpT gift cards, Amazon gift cards, books, and more! 

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