Silverwing Kenneth Oppel Book Club Sets

Book Reviews:

OPPEL, Kenneth. Silverwing. 217p. CIP. S & S. Oct. 1997. RTE $16. ISBN 0-689-81529-8. LC 97-10977.

Gr 4-6--The plot of this book sounds like the perfect adventure for a noble hero: a dangerous journey with a cryptic map and a trusty companion. But here's the catch: the hero is an undersized bat. Shade, a newborn Silverwing, is separated from his colony during their winter migrations. With the help of an exiled Brightwing, he must find his colony and save them from marauding cannibal bats imported from the tropics. In an author's note, Oppel writes that he "liked the challenge of taking animals that many might consider 'ugly' or 'scary' and fashioning them into interesting, appealing characters"; he has done just that with Shade and his comrades. While these characters are not particularly well rounded, readers will sympathize with the young bat's sometimes foolhardy efforts to prove that he's more than the colony runt and the villains--fire-carrying owls an] six-foot, fresh-eating bats--will keep even reluctant readers engaged. However, the greatest strengths of this story lie in its fast-paced, cliff-hanging action and its setting within the hollow trees and bell towers of the bats' monochromatic nighttime world. Recommend this one to fans of Avi's Poppy (Orchard, 1995); they won't be disappointed.

Wright, Beth. "Grades 5 & Up: Fiction." School Library Journal 43.10 (1997): 137. Academic Search Elite. Web. 14 Apr. 2015.

Kenneth Oppel Silverwing 217 pp. Simon 10/97 ISBN 0-689-81529-8 16.00 (Intermediate)

Oppel has combined factual elements of bat behavior, migration, and communication with elements of traditional animal fantasy to create a fully imagined nighttime world. Shade is the runt of his Silverwing colony, adored and protected by his mother but teased by his larger fellow newborns. Shade's physical limitations are balanced by his exceptional intelligence, curiosity, and determination, but, as with many heroes, his greatest strengths are also his weaknesses. Shade's yearning to see the forbidden sun incurs the wrath of enemy owls who burn out his colony's ancient summer haven, and when the Silverwings set out for their winter home, Shade's eagerness to prove himself causes him to lose the others in a terrible storm. He then begins the long and dangerous journey to find his colony with the help of his new friend Marina, a Brightwing shunned by her own colony because of the silver band on her leg. Together they search for Shade's home as well as the truth about the bands, the role of the humans, Shade's father (presumed dead), and the promise of the great Winged Spirit, Nocturna. Their quest and their lives are threatened by an endless series of adversaries: the city pigeons, a kingdom of rats, the onslaught of winter, and two enormous and cruelly powerful vampire bats. The novel's end is a cliffhanger, with one journey completed and another about to begin. Oppel's bats are fully developed characters who, if not quite cuddly, will certainly earn readers' sympathy and respect. In Silverwing the author has created an intriguing microcosm of rival species, factions, and religions, and has left enough unsolved mystery to entice readers into the apparently planned sequel.

Adams, Lauren. "Silverwing." Horn Book Magazine 73.6 (1997): 684. Academic Search Elite. Web. 14 Apr. 2015.

Silverwing Kenneth Oppel Book Club Sets

Shade is a young silverwing bat, known as the runt of the colony despite his father's fame as a hunter, who finds it difficult to adjust to the rules. He wants to see the sun rise and simply does not understand why he must be back to the colony before first light, until the morning he narrowly misses being caught by an owl. The owls are furious that Shade is not given over to them and plan their revenge. They set afire the tree the bat colony uses. With winter on its way, the colony must now migrate to warmer climes.

It is on this trip that Shade, caught in a storm, is blown off course and comes to an island. He meets Marina, a brightwing bat, and she helps him to get back to the mainland and the migration route.

Far below this valiant duo, a dark evil side is gaining strength. Two huge flesh-eating tropical bats escape from a zoo. Goth and Throbb kill a pigeon, and war is declared between the birds and all bats. Shade and Marina barely escape. However, Goth and Throbb are in full pursuit, knowing that Shade will act as a guide and lead them to many delicious bats.

All fantasy must be based on reality. Oppel's novel relates a world based on his extensive research of bats' lives and habits. Oppel delights in sharing imagery from the bats' perspective. The church looked "more like the skeleton of a vast, ancient beast, crouched, it's head bent into the earth... and at the end of the building rose the highest tower of all, tapered like an animal's bony tail, pointing into the air" (p. 99). The writer's sense of credibility and use of short, quick sentences enlivens the dialogue and moves the plot along at an incredible pace.

Readers become totally absorbed in the fantasy of these bats. They discover a Tolkien-like world that exists alongside or beneath reality. The interrelationships of this world are woven into its natural laws; for instance, the peace agreement between the bats and the owls states that the bats should be out of sight by dawn.

Jobe, Ronald. "Canadian Connections." Journal Of Adolescent & Adult Literacy 40.8 (1997): 677. Academic Search Elite. Web. 14 Apr. 2015

Silverwing Kenneth Oppel Book Club Sets

Sample Discussion Questions

1 Discuss with the group and complete the graphic organizer below, using jot notes:

What facts doyou know about bats?

What opinionsdo you have about bats?

Can you thinkof any stories, myths, or legends that have bats in them?

What would youstill like to learn about bats?

Where couldyou find out more information about bats?

2 Now that you’ve discussed the chart while completing it, write your own definition for the words written in bold in the chart. Then use a dictionary to see just how close your definitions were!

3 Study the cover of the novel, Silverwing. If your teacher permits, visit the Silverwing website to examine some of the different covers that have been made for the book over the years:www.silverwing.ca/covergallery.htm Using the visual clues, predict what you think might happen in Silverwing. How does the cover help us imagine what the author “sees?” Is one cover more helpful to the reader than another? Explain your thoughts.

4 The author, Kenneth Oppel, could have given the protagonist, Shade, any name he liked. Out of all the choices, he picked “Shade.” What images or ideas do you think the name “Shade” creates in the reader’s imagination? Explain using the text and your own ideas.

5 A good author always manages to give the reader enough information to make the reader “see” the characters. Using the information in Chapter 1, make a list of ways Shade is described in the chapter. Then, using the information you’ve gathered, draw a picture of Shade the way you see him. Feel free to label it, use a caption, colour it, etc. in order to make your vision as clear as you can.

Silverwing Kenneth Oppel Book Club Sets

Quotations from the book that

describeShade’s physical appearance:

Pagenumbers where those quotations are found:

Your illustration of Shade,using the information you’ve

gathered and assembled in this chart:

6 Why do you think the author begins the chapter (and book) with a scene where Shade is hunting? Is it a good way to begin, in your opinion? Why or why not?

7 There are three ways you can learn about characters in a story: By what the character says By what the character does By what others say about the characterWith this in mind, what do we learn about the character of Shade in this book? Prove using jot notes and examples from the text:

Example from the text: What it tells us about Shade:

8 Shade has experienced some pretty rough times. Can you relate with how he is feeling? Have you ever been in a similar situation, or felt the same way? Write a brief account of a time when you have felt like Shade and remember to relate your experience back to his.

9 Why is the word “HUMAN” always capitalized in the novel, in your opinion? Explain your thoughts.

10 In the first chapter of Silverwing, the author demonstrated how Shade’s echolocation worked as he hunted a tiger moth. How does the author use that earlier scene now, at the end of the story? Explain.

Oppel, Kenneth. The World of Kenneth Oppel’s Silverwing: Story Guides for Teachers. “Silverwing Anniversary Edition Teacher’s Guide by Martha Martin”. HarperCollins Canada. Web 14 Apr 2015. http://www.kennethoppel.ca/silverwing/studyguides.shtml

Silverwing Kenneth Oppel Book Club Sets

Activities and Story Stretchers for Silverwing:

From www.Kidzone.ws

Silverwing Kenneth Oppel Book Club Sets

Bat Sense of Smell Experiment

Many bats leave their babies (pups) in a nursery when they go out hunting for food. Because so many bats live together, a mother bat often has to use her keen sense of smell to find her pup amongst hundreds or thousands of other pups.

What you need:

1 film canister per child and use masking tape to mark each canister with child’s name Cotton balls scented (i.e. cinnamon, vanilla extract, lemon extract, mint extract, oil of

cloves, witch hazel, almond oil, nutmeg, chocolate) Egg carton with top ripped off Blindfolds for children

Tell children that they will be pretending to be mother bats and that the canisters are their babies. The egg carton represents the bat nursery. Blindfold children to represent the dark cave. Have children remove the lid from their canister. Give children a few moments to become familiar with their “pup’s” scent. Then, leaving lids off, have children put their canisters in the egg carton nursery. Have children imagine that they are going out to hunt for food.

One at a time, ask children to return to the nursery to find their pup. Once they have found their pup, they should remove it from the nursery. If a child cannot find his/her pup, ask him/her to wait until the other children have found their pups and then try again. It is possible that another child may have chosen their pup. If so, encourage him/her to choose a remaining pup and be ready to describe how its scent differs from his/her pup’s scent.

Have children remove their blindfolds and look at their pups. Have them discuss how they found their pup (sense of smell and position in nursery) and why they might have the wrong pup. Ask how real bats find their pups (sense of smell, position, and hearing).

From Kids Soup: Where Learning Tastes Good!

Silverwing Kenneth Oppel Book Club Sets

Bat Songs and PoemsBats Are Sleeping

Tune: Frere Jacques

Bats are sleepingBats are sleeping

Upside down.Upside down.

Sleeping in the morning sun.Waiting for the night to come.

Then they'll fly all around.Then they'll fly all around.

Vampire BatsTune: Three Blind Micewritten by Mrs. Jones

Vampire bats, vampire batsDrinking blood, drinking bloodFlying around the sky at night

Sleeping in caves without a frightDid you ever see such an awesome sight

As Vampire bats?

From Mrs. Jones – Bats are Cool!

Echolocation Activities

To demonstrate echolocation, pair children off and have them decide on one sound. It can be clapping, snapping, whistling, or stomping. Then blindfold one child in each group and separate them from their partners. Have the other children begin their designated sounds until their blindfolded partner reaches them.

From Livestrong.com Activities for Kids About Bats & Echolocation

Silverwing Kenneth Oppel Book Club Sets

From A to Z Kids Stuff

Silverwing Kenneth Oppel Book Club Sets

Silverwing Kenneth Oppel Book Club Sets

Name_____________________________

Skip Count MazeHelp the bat find his mosquito dinner. Skip count by 10 from 10 to 200. Color in the squares as you count.

A to Z Kids Stuff http://www.atozkidsstuff.com

Silverwing Kenneth Oppel Book Club Sets

Name_____________________________

Skip Count MazeHelp the bat find its cave. Skip count by 2 from 2 to 100.

Color in the squares as you count.

A to Z Kids Stuff http://www.atozkidsstuff.com