Because of Winn-Dixie

"The kind of book people love to read and tell their friends to read"--The Washington Post

DiCamillo, K. (2000). Because of Winn-Dixie. Cambridge : Candlewick Press.

 Ten year old Opal goes into the Winn-Dixie supermarket and comes out not with groceries, but with a dog. She fittingly names the dog Winn-Dixie and the two start their journey together. Opal and her father have just moved to Florida, and Opal finds herself lonely and missing her mother. Because of Winn-Dixie, her father tells her ten things about her mother, one for each year that Opal has been alive. Over the course of the summer, Opal and Winn-Dixie explore their new hometown, meet several new people, and gather information about Opal's mother. Eventually, Opal learns that she needs to let go of her mother and move on with her life. And who better to do that with than with her new best friend, Winn-Dixie?

Reading Level: 610L
Suggested Delivery: 3rd Grade Read Aloud

Electronic Resources:

Discussions: This reading guide gives readers a brief summary of Because of Winn-Dixie, as well as several discussion questions. These questions focus both on literal and inferential comprehension. The guide lists questions in the order the answers are presented or can be interpreted from the book. Several of the questions are a great way to start whole class discussions after reading aloud various sections of the book.

Teacher's Guide: This guide gives a short summary of the book along with information about Kate DiCamillo, the author. It then gives several before, during, and after reading strategies that teachers can implement in their classroom when reading Because of Winn-Dixie. The before reading strategies activate and build prior knowledge necessary to understand the plot of the book. The during reading strategies enable students to make connections with the text, an important skill in inferential comprehension. The after reading section of the guide lists several open-ended questions that relate to the various themes found in the book. The guide then lists activities across the content areas that connect to Because of Winn-Dixie.

Vocabulary:  missionary, exception, wheezed, melancholy, roundabout, pathological, peculiar, identical, imitated, complicated, amuse, notion

Reading Strategies:

• Before Reading: Read the first page of the book aloud. Ask the students whose point of view the story is being told from. How do they know? What can they gather about her from the first page? What do they think will happen to her throughout the rest of the book?
• During Reading: Students make connections with the text. Use a think-pair-share model of discussion. Have students think about a character that they can relate to. Share this information with their partner. They must say why they relate using textual support. 
• After Reading: Complete a popcorn review of the book in which students pop in and out of the discussion. The students will discuss their thoughts of book. 

Inferential Comprehension: Imagine that you are Opal. Write a letter to your mother explaining everything that happened over the summer and how it has effected you. How have you changed from the start of the summer to the end of summer?