Title: The Invention of Hugo Cabret
Author and Illustrator: Brian Selznick
About the author: Brian Selznick has won many awards for his illustrations. He became interested in art at an early age when he made dinosaur sculptures out of tinfoil at his grandmother’s house. In school Brian’s classmates wanted to see his wonderful drawings. He went to The Rhode Island School of Design. He decided after school that he wanted to illustrate children’s books.
Genre: Fiction/ Novel
Age Levels: 9-12 years old
Synopsis: “Orphan, clock keeper, and thief, Hugo lives in the walls of a busy Paris train station, where his survival depends on secrets and anonymity. But when his world suddenly interlocks with an eccentric, bookish girl and a bitter old man who runs a toy booth in the station, Hugo's undercover life, and his most precious secret, are put in jeopardy. A cryptic drawing, a treasured notebook, a stolen key, a mechanical man, and a hidden message from Hugo's dead father form the backbone of this intricate, tender, and spellbinding mystery.”
Pre-Reading Activities: Since there could be some tricky vocabulary in this book, I would expose my students to the vocabulary they could potentially have difficulty with. This would allow opportunity for students to review how to use a dictionary. Each vocabulary word would be placed on an index card and each student would receive an index card. I would also have index cards with the definition of the words and each student would receive a definition card. Students would be required to find the definition that matches their term. This activity gets students moving and provides active engagement and team work.
Post-Reading Activities: Since the book takes place in France in 1930, I would have students conduct a research project. Students would be required to research facts about France in the 1930's. This would build background knowledge before reading the text. Students could also work in groups to create their research project. The could create any presentation they chose (poster, power point, diorama, etc). Students could also learn more about automatons, draw their own automaton and describe what it's functions would be. A great project would be to actually have students build their automaton. Since the book discusses movies a lot, students could get into groups and write their own movies. They could act them out and record them, then play them back to the class. This would be a great project to incorporate writing, story elements (plot, setting, characters, etc.),
My Reflection: I really liked this book. The illustrations are amazing and beautiful. I liked this book because there are so many opportunities to provide rich and engaging lessons for students. I like that the artwork progresses just like your watching a movie. It is almost like a silent film, so the pictures tell the story and the plot.
Work Cited:
Barnes and Noble
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