Vishwa Narayan - NTS Literature Response Journal - 1083460

Number the Stars

Reflection Journal

By: Vishwa Narayan

Building Background
Knowledge

Learning Target: I can compare and contrast two or more
characters, settings, or events in a story, drawing on specific
details in the text.

Background of this Story:
In some countries around the world the government is

called a dictatorship. In a dictatorship, one person or a small
group of people have complete control of the country. In many
cases the military enforces the control. If a person does not
follow the rules, they may be arrested, threatened, scared, or
tortured. The citizens of that country are not allowed to talk or
act against the dictatorship. A person can be rewarded if they
tell the dictatorship about other people who are against the
government.

Interpretive Question: How does the dictatorship
system of government in the story affect Pedro, his
family, and the citizens it governs?

R Restate the Question (green) Mrs. Rodriguez’s Example
- Read the question or prompt In the book, The Composition,
- Underline keywords Pedro, his family, and their entire
- Rewrite the question as a community are negatively affected by
statement using your own words the dictatorship government. One
example from the text of the problems
A Answer the Question (green) that the dictatorship caused can be
- Answer the question found on page 8. Don Daniel was
*If there is more that one part of dragged down the street by two men
the question, make sure to answer who were “pointing machine guns at
ALL parts. him.” This clearly shows that the
dictatorship is treating the people in
C Cite Evidence (yellows) the community poorly by threatening
- Use evidence from the text to them with weapons. Pedro’s parents
support your answer. lived in fear that they would be caught
-Include both paraphrased going against the government. They
evidence and direct quotes had to turn their radio down very low
so that they wouldn’t be caught
Possible evidence starters: listening. Pedro’s mom was so scared
According to the text… that she “cried silently at the table.”
For example… This is further evidence that the
On page ___ it says… government was making the people
Further support can be found... live in fear and even their daily tasks
In the article/ chapter it states... are being impacted. Finally, Pedro
himself was negatively affected by the
E Explain (reds) government. He was put in the
- Explain how each piece of text position of having to lie on his
evidence supports your answer. composition so that his parents
wouldn’t be caught. The dictatorship
Possible explain starters: tried to turn children against their
This clearly shows that… own parents. Obviously, the
This means that… dictatorship created fear and
This further supports the idea that… hardships for everyone that Pedro was
close to in his life.
S Sum it Up (green)
- Conclude your answer
- Link back to the topic sentence
using different words

Possible summary starters:
Clearly Definitely Certainly
To sum up In fact Obviously

Building Background
Knowledge

World War II and
the Holocaust

Learning Target: I can provide a summary of the text that
includes the main ideas and key details, as well as other
important information.

Summary of the article:
The article “World War II and the Holocaust” describes

how Adolf Hitler set out to rule the world. He came into power
in 1933 and began to encourage and blame the Jews in
Germany. Starting in 1941, Jewish people were relocated
and shipped to concentration camps. In these camps over six
million Jews died. He joined forces with Italy and Japan.
When Japan bombed Pearl Harbor on Hawaii, 1941, the
United States entered the war and fought against the axis
powers until 1945when the war ended.

Building Background
Knowledge

Underground
Movements

Learning Target: I can explain the relationships or interactions
between two or more individuals, events, ideas, or concepts in a
historical, scientific, or technical text based on specific
information in the text.

How have underground movements affected eveWnhtesn

throughout history? This was a considering
war WW2, we

between the tend to think

Underground Nazis and all
Railroad the Danes. underground
movements

to be the

Underground good guys.

Movements

They saved It stopped many white World
lives of enslaved men taking advantage War II
people, and changed of slaves and was a big
the course of Civil reason why black people
Rights. have freedom.

Building Background
Knowledge

Learning Target: I can compare and contrast two or more
characters, settings, or events in a story, drawing on specific
details in the text.

Background of this Story:
“For centuries, the Star of David was a symbol of Jewish

pride. But during World War II, Nazis used the Star to
segregate and terrorize the Jewish people. Except in
Denmark. When Nazi soldiers occupied his country, King
Christian X of Denmark committed himself to keeping all
Danes safe from harm. The bravery of the Danes and their
king has inspired many legends. The most enduring is the
legend of the yellow star, which symbolizes the loyalty and
fearless spirit of the king and his people.”

Source: Peachtree Publishers

Interpretive Question: How did King Christian X’s
response to the yellow Star order in the story
affect the citizens of Denmark?

R Restate the Question (green) Team Response:
- Read the question or prompt
- Underline keywords In the book, The Yellow Star, it shows that King
- Rewrite the question as a Christian X response to the Yellow Star Order
statement using your own words affected the citizens of Denmark by assuring the
Jews that they none of them would die in vain.
A Answer the Question (green) King Christian X did this by using the Yellow Star
- Answer the question patch to his advantage to portray to the Jews that
*If there is more that one part of every citizen of Denmark will help and risk their
the question, make sure to answer lives for them. According to the text, its says, ¨We
ALL parts. only have an hour before I ride at dawn¨ the king
said urgently. ¨Can you complete this task in
C Cite Evidence (yellows) time?¨
- Use evidence from the text to ¨Yes, your Highness. I´ll begin immediately.¨ The
support your answer. tailor bowed respectfully. ¨And you do
-Include both paraphrased understand what this means?¨ the king insisted.¨ I
evidence and direct quotes do, your Highness, as will all of your subjects,¨ he
answered with pride.This clearly foreshadows
Possible evidence starters: his plan of making all people wear the Yellow
According to the text… Star, to let the Jews know you´re not alone. On
For example… pages 1 and 2 it shows the many differences
On page ___ it says… danes had, but still pointing out that all danes no
Further support can be found... matter what, they all are loyal subjects of King
In the article/ chapter it states... Christian. This obviously points to why when
King Christian wore the Yellow Star, no one
E Explain (reds) questioned it and wore it to, as they are all loyal
- Explain how each piece of text to the King. Further support is found when he
evidence supports your answer. gets his idea, as he looked into the stars on page
13, when he said you have to hide it among his
Possible explain starters: sisters. This clearly shows that he got the idea to
This clearly shows that… hide the Jews among the Aryan race and others
This means that… too.
This further supports the idea that…
Definitely, King Christian
S Sum it Up (green) X response to the Yellow Star Order affected the
- Conclude your answer citizens by using clever tactics to support and
- Link back to the topic sentence help the Jews of Denmark.
using different words

Possible summary starters:
Clearly Definitely Certainly
To sum up In fact Obviously

Number the
Stars

Interpretive
Question
Responses

Learning Target: I can quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text
says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.

Chapter 1

How are the characters’ lives
different than ours?

R Restate the Question (green)
- Read the question or prompt
- Underline keywords
- Rewrite the question as a
statement using your own words

A Answer the Question (green) In the book, Number the Star, the cha
- Answer the question are different from our lives by living i
*If there is more that one part of the totalitarian country that doesn't give t
question, make sure to answer ALL freedom. According to the text, it says
parts. soldier ordered in a stern voice¨, He al
to stop young children from measly r
C Cite Evidence (yellows) the road. This is different from our liv
- Use evidence from the text to have soldiers controlling and patrollin
support your answer. the streets, especially with kids.
-Include both paraphrased Another example is that they are actua
evidence and direct quotes the soldiers. In the book the soldiers a
bayonets and sharp tools to mess aro
Possible evidence starters: kids. People are afraid of the soldiers
According to the text… shops owners actually hide when a sol
For example… comotion. Furthermore support to th
On page ___ it says… people is when Annemarie grabbed K
Further support can be found... in, of course fear. Some other examp
In the article/ chapter it states... after the incident they didn't speak t e
until they got home, saying to each oth
E Explain (reds) were both scared, and trying to avoid
- Explain how each piece of text soldiers again. Another common them
evidence supports your answer. quality of Copenhagen after Nazi occ
is shown by the coffee actually being H
Possible explain starters: in hot brewed water. This clearly show
This clearly shows that… quality of Copenhagen as they cant ha
This means that… and simple coffee. Also, on page 9, its
This further supports the idea that… the dont even have sugar or butter for
Infact, the most damning evidence is
S Sum it Up (green) freedom. They have an illegal newspa
- Conclude your answer have to burn it after reading it, even u
- Link back to the topic sentence tactics to rebel against the Nazis. This
using different words a group called the Resistance. This ob
the oppressing government is causing
Possible summary starters: riot. Clearly, the characters lives are d
Clearly Definitely Certainly ours through many ways.
To sum up In fact Obviously

Learning Target: I can quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text
says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.

Chapter 2

How does this picture relate to the chapter?

My Thoughts:

This picture relates to the story by the fact that when Annemarie said
that King Christian X is nothing like a king in a huge palace and is

looking for husbands for their daughters. This is most likely someone
who is asking the King's daughter hand in marraige.

Learning Target: I can determine a theme of a story from details in the text,
including how characters in a story respond to challenges.

R Restate the Question (green) Chapter 3
- Read the question or prompt
- Underline keywords “Now I think all of Denmark
- Rewrite the question as a must be the bodyguard for
statement using your own words the Jews as well.” What does

A Answer the Question (green) this mean?
- Answer the question
*If there is more that one part of Response:
the question, make sure to answer The phrase, “Now I think all of
ALL parts. Denmark must be the bodyguard
for the Jews as well.” means that
C Cite Evidence (yellows) everyone is human and no matter
- Use evidence from the text to what religion they are everyone will
support your answer. help them. Further support can be
-Include both paraphrased found when Papa said that the
evidence and direct quotes Danes would support King
Christian X. This obviously shows
Possible evidence starters: that people will help King Christian
According to the text… X, so they could easily do that to
For example… Jewish people. Another piece of
On page ___ it says… evidence is when Annemarie said
Further support can be found... will people protect Jews and how all
In the article/ chapter it states... the mothers stated “yes” for that
question. Obviously, this could
E Explain (reds) mean much more people who read
- Explain how each piece of text “De Frie Danske” would support
evidence supports your answer. Jews. Clearly, we get to know many
examples of what “Now I Think All
Possible explain starters: of Denmark Must Be the
This clearly shows that… Bodyguard For Jews As Well” means
This means that… in the book, Number the Stars.
This further supports the idea that…

S Sum it Up (green)
- Conclude your answer
- Link back to the topic sentence
using different words

Possible summary starters:
Clearly Definitely Certainly
To sum up In fact Obviously

Learning Target: I can quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text
says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.

Chapter 4

How does this picture relate to the chapter?

My Thoughts:
These fireworks are from the Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen
when the Danes blew up the boats that the Nazi’s had been
occupying, I get this from, “The Danes had destroyed their
own naval fleet, blowing up the vessels one by one, as the

Germans approached to take over the ships for their own
use.”

Learning Target: I can compare and contrast two or more characters, settings, or
events in a story, drawing on specific details in the text.

Chapter 5

Compare and contrast the Danish Citizens and Nazis.
The first attribute has been chosen for you. Choose at

least two additional attributes to compare.

Danish Attributes Nazi Soldiers
Citizens Being

Compared

They think Jews are Feelings about the They think they are
also Danes and will Jewish people evil and should be
protect them against executed at all cost.
the Nazi’s. As many As in the book, they
times they allow Ellen arrested the Hirsch
family, for being a
to come into the
house, even when a Jew

soldier was there.

They treat them like How they treat the They treat them like
normal Danes and Jewish people very cunning and evil
friends as many of
them are friends with people, giving no
Annemarie’s parents mercy to them, as
they rip up the photo

with Lise and
Annemarie.

They think the Jews How they think about They think they are
are just another the Jews brutal enemies of the
“superior” Aryan race,
religious community
of Danes. and destroyed the
German people in

Learning Target: I can quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text
says explicitly and whendrawing inferences from the text.

Chapter 6

How does this picture relate to the chapter?

My Thoughts:

This is code for Uncle Henrik that Annemarie was bringing Ellen. Papa says
the ¨cigarettes¨ are coming to Uncle Henrik on the phone. I also think this is

code for Nazi officers who are suspicious about Ellen after the incident.

Learning Target: I can quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text
says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.

Chapter 7-8
How does war change people?
Why?
Restate the Question (green)
R
A - Read the question or prompt
C
- Underline keywords
E
- Rewrite the question as a

statement using your own words War changes people by making their
lives miserable, make all of their daily
Answer the Question (green) routines harder, and always have to
- Answer the question speak in code for fear of getting
*If there is more that one part of captured by the Nazi regime.
the question, make sure to answer
ALL parts.

Cite Evidence (yellows) For example, when Annemarie and
- Use evidence from the text to Ellen visits Uncle Henrik's house it’s
support your answer. untidy and incredibly disorganized.
-Include both paraphrased There are many inklings to this claim, as
evidence and direct quotes in the text it says, “Mama scrubbed and
dusted, tsk-tsking at Uncle Henrik’s
Possible evidence starters: untidy housekeeping.” and how much
According to the text… dust had accumulated on his rugs and
For example… old wood floors.
On page ___ it says…

Further support can be found... This and how on page 71, it states the
In the article/ chapter it states... steps are broken, a leaking faucet, mice

Explain (reds) in the attic, his brown sweater has a
- Explain how each piece of text large moth hole in it (which also
evidence supports your answer. corresponds to how he can’t take care of
his own clothes), and some additional
cleaning about their windows. This
Possible explain starters: obviously shows the quality and the
This clearly shows that… hardships Danish citizens have to go
This means that… through in war time.
This further supports the idea that…

S Sum it Up (green) Further support can be found from
- Conclude your answer when (also) in page 71, they are talking
- Link back to the topic sentence quite oddly. Saying such things as,
using different words “Tomorrow will be a day for fishing”
when every day Uncle Henrik goes
Possible summary starters: fishing. Even saying, “The weather is
Clearly Definitely Certainly right?” and “I will be going back to the
To sum up In fact Obviously boat tonight after supper. We will leave
very early in the morning. I will stay on

Learning Target: I can determine a theme of a story, from details in the text,
including how characters in a story respond to challenges.

Chapter 9-10

Compare and contrast Mama and
Annemarie and how they faced the
challenges when the German soldiers

came to the “funeral.”

Mama Attributes Annemarie
Being

Compared

She did not budge Bravery during She was very brave
even when she got The situation. and didn’t make a fit
slapped and just got and start crying but
up and resumed her
understood the
work. problem.

Mama only felt fear How they felt fear Annemarie felt as if
about others, their was a heavy
weight on her chest
immediately making and almost started
food and start getting
crying.
blankets.

Mama knows the What they knew Annemarie has little
funeral is actually a about the things they inklets all over the
cover-up to the fact were about to do. place as to know
that they were going what they were about

to escape Nazi to do.
occupied Denmark.

Learning Target: I can quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text
says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.

R Restate the Question (green) Chapter 11
- Read the question or prompt
- Underline keywords When is telling the truth
- Rewrite the question as a important? When is not
statement using your own words
telling the truth important?
A Answer the Question (green)
- Answer the question While people are always told to tell the
*If there is more that one part of truth, there are times when telling lies
the question, make sure to answer are necessary. One example of this is
ALL parts. when Annemarie told a lie to the Nazi
officer, we find this out as in the book it
C Cite Evidence (yellows) states, “Who died? He asked harshly. No
- Use evidence from the text to one answered. They watched
support your answer. Annemarie, and she realized that the
-Include both paraphrased officer was directing the question at her.
evidence and direct quotes Now she knew for certain what Uncle
Henrik had meant when he talked to her
Possible evidence starters: in the barn. To be brave came more
According to the text… easily if you knew nothing. She
For example… swallowed. “My Great-aunt Birte” she
On page ___ it says… lied, in a firm voice.” This obviously
Further support can be found... shows it’s much better to lie sometimes.
In the article/ chapter it states... Another example is when Annemarie
saw the package protruding out of Mr.
E Explain (reds) Rosen's pocket, that Peter gave, she
- Explain how each piece of text knew it was better not letting Mr. Rosen
evidence supports your answer. know what was in the package Peter
gave him. This is some other proof that
Possible explain starters: lying sometimes is necessary. But, also
This clearly shows that… telling the truth is necessary too. In
This means that… chapter 6, Kristi was about to tell a guard
This further supports the idea that… on the train about how Ellen was Jewish,
almost telling the guard it was Ellen's
S Sum it Up (green) birthday, but she didn't know that and
- Conclude your answer told the truth to the extent that she
- Link back to the topic sentence knew about the situation. In conclusion,
using different words sometimes you have to bed the truth to
get out of risky situations.
Possible summary starters:
Clearly Definitely Certainly
To sum up In fact Obviously

Learning Target: I can determine a theme of a story, from details in the text,
including how characters in a story respond to challenges.

Chapter 12-13

How does this text relate to Number the stars and
particularly Annemarie in chapter 13?

My Thoughts:
I feel this book could correlate with Chapter 12-13 in Number
the Stars by how Mama forgot to give the package to Peter.
This could mean that Mama says to Annemarie to go deliver
the package without hesitating at all. That's the same thing

the “Man with the Red Bandana” did to save the people at
9/11.

Learning Target: I can quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text
says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.

R Restate the Question (green) Chapter 14-15
- Read the question or prompt
- Underline keywords What is the author’s purpose of
- Rewrite the question as a including the story of Little
statement using your own words Red Riding Hood during
Annemarie’s run through the
A Answer the Question (green) forest?
- Answer the question
*If there is more that one part of The author’s purpose for including the
the question, make sure to answer story of Red-Riding Hood is because
ALL parts. To make suspense and show how even
the simplest stories could have a dark
C Cite Evidence (yellows) rebranding.
- Use evidence from the text to For example, in Chapter 15 when the
support your answer. guards were about to come, it starts
-Include both paraphrased going in immense detail of how “a wolf”
evidence and direct quotes is coming, like in Red-Riding Hood,
there is a wolf. This is obviously for
Possible evidence starters: creating dramatic suspense for the
According to the text… reader. Another example is to show how
For example… times have changed, as in both Chapter
On page ___ it says… 14 and 15 she keeps on thinking about
Further support can be found... telling the story to Kirsti and how she
In the article/ chapter it states... would change the plot for beautiful
settings and nice characters, but now
E Explain (reds) she tells a dark and grimm tale. This
- Explain how each piece of text shows how time had changed between
evidence supports your answer. the two tellings, after German
occupation and before German
Possible explain starters: occupation. One last example is how
This clearly shows that… Lois Lowry used a simple tail we
This means that… wouldn’t think of that much but make it
This further supports the idea that… suspenseful for higher aged children.
Clearly, the author put Red-Riding
S Sum it Up (green) Hood for suspense and show how
- Conclude your answer effective a simple story can be.
- Link back to the topic sentence
using different words

Possible summary starters:
Clearly Definitely Certainly
To sum up In fact Obviously

Chapter 16-17 and
Afterword
Why does the author include the
“Afterword?” Why is it important
to read the afterword, especially
in historical fiction books?
R Restate the Question (green)
- Read the question or prompt
- Underline keywords
- Rewrite the question as a

statement using your own words

A Answer the Question (green) The reason why the author put in the
- Answer the question afterward and why you should read it is
*If there is more that one part of because it tells you a story that couldn’t
the question, make sure to answer be told in the original story, creative
ALL parts. ways the Danish people used to defy the
Nazis, and the reason why Lois Lowry
C Cite Evidence (yellows) put this in is to offer some more
- Use evidence from the text to information about the Danish heroes of
support your answer. WW2. For example, she talks about a
-Include both paraphrased high German officer, named Georg
evidence and direct quotes Ferdinand Duckwitz, who told “rabbi” to
warn the Jewish people not to go to the
Possible evidence starters: synagogue at the capital. This obviously
According to the text… shows how Lois Lowry likes showing
For example… WW2 heroes in action. Another example
On page ___ it says… is when she talked about the real Peter
Further support can be found... Neilsen, Kim Malthe-Bruun. He
In the article/ chapter it states... harbored Jewish citizens to Sweden, but
eventually got captured and died at the
E Explain (reds) age of 21. This obviously shows why
- Explain how each piece of text some simple book character could have a
evidence supports your answer. interesting tale behind them, only found
in the afterword. The last evidence is
Possible explain starters: how we learnt the way the handkerchief
This clearly shows that… was made with cocaine and rabbit blood.
This means that… This shows how the Danish citizens used
This further supports the idea that… D.I.Y tactics. Clearly, the afterword is
very important and Lois Lowry utilizes
S Sum it Up (green) them to the maximum.
- Conclude your answer
- Link back to the topic sentence
using different words

Possible summary starters:
Clearly Definitely Certainly
To sum up In fact Obviously