Login
Join

Lesson Plans and Teaching Resources for A Long Way from Chicago

The cover for A Long Way from Chicago Lesson Plans and Teaching Resources
Download
Preview
Buy the book

Use A Long Way from Chicago by Richard Peck to turn your read aloud or small group work into a time to improve comprehension and talk about the text in purposeful ways.

A Long Way from Chicago is a series of short stories about the summers two children spend with their grandmother in rural Illinois. Full of hilarious and sometimes shocking stories, this award-winning novel is an ideal anchor text for Book Club discussions focused on character perspective and the ways in which the characters' perspectives grow and change with each passing summer. By following the minilessons included in this book club resource set, you'll provide students with the opportunity to track changes in perspective over time, determine pivotal moments that change perspective, and make inferences to identify a character's perspective.
Print resources
Preview
Buy the book

Explore lesson plans and activities to help you teach with A Long Way from Chicago in the drop down below.

Instructional Overview

Instructional Overview

The instructional overview includes background information on perspective, instructional objectives for each Book Club meeting, and a list of the materials and preparations needed for the A Long Way from Chicago Book Club
Common Core State Standards Alignment
TEKS Alignment
Download
Preview

Management Resources

The first page of Book Club for A Long Way from Chicago Management Resources

Management Resources

The management resources include a Book Club Calendar, conversation prompts, Student Self-Evaluation forms, Reading Response Board (with optional Common Core alignment), and an Expectations for Book Club anchor chart.
Download
Preview

Meeting 1

The Book Club for A Long Way from Chicago by Richard Peck focuses on tracking changes in a character's perspective across a longer text. This first meeting introduces the concept of perspective to the readers.
Download
Preview

Meeting 2

During the second book club meeting for A Long Way from Chicago, students will work to notice examples of the main character's changing perspective of his grandmother.
Download
Preview

Meeting 3

Author Richard Peck uses pivotal events in A Long Way from Chicago to change the perspective of the main character. During the third Book Club meeting, students will use a graphic organizer to track their thinking about Joey's perspective of his grandmother.
Download
Preview

Meeting 4

The fourth Book Club meeting focuses on the ways in which historical perspective affects the characters in A Long Way from Chicago. Students will learn in order to really understand Joey's perspective you have to consider his life and the rules he had to live by during the early 20th century.
Download
Preview

Meeting 5

Author Richard Peck changes the main character's perspective by using the influence of other characters. This Book Club meeting focuses on finding examples of this literary device in the text.
Download
Preview

Meeting 6

When readers use their prior knowledge and information from the text, they are able to make inferences that deepen their understanding of what is happening in the story. In the sixth Book Club meeting for A Long Way from Chicago, students will examine the ways in which the characters make inferences and how those inferences affect their perspective.
Download
Preview

Meeting 7

As students progress through Richard Peck's novel, they are exposed to a variety of changing perspectives. This Book Club meeting will invite students to consider how Mary Alice and Joey's perspective of their grandmother has changed as they've gotten older. The included graphic organizer will readers track their observations as they continue to read A Long Way from Chicago.
Download
Preview
The first page of Book Club for A Long Way from Chicago Meeting 8

Meeting 8

This Book Club meeting for A Long Way from Chicagoo will support students as they analyze the relationship between the author's message and the reader's perspective of Joey's grandma. Included in this meeting are prompts to support a discussion about how and why perspectives change throughout the novel.
Download
Preview

Meeting 9

The final Book Club meeting for A Long Way from Chicago by Richard Peck looks at how and why Joey's perspective of his grandmother changed over the course of the text. Readers are further encouraged to make a text-to-self connection and apply the same thinking to a time when their perspective about something was changed.
Download
Preview
The first page of Asking Questions with A Bad Case of Stripes

Vocabulary Connections with A Long Way from Chicago

This set of vocabulary development resources for A Long Way from Chicago highlights the words that are most important for students to know and understand while reading the book.  Through engaging in fun word games, matching words to definitions, and practicing how to categorize words, students will develop the vocabulary necessary to comprehend this story and many others.

Common Core State Standards Alignment
L.5.4a,L.5.5,L.5.6
TEKS Alignment
5.7E,5.7F,5.3A,5.3B
Print
Preview PDF
Preview Digital
Preview Digital
Print

Focus Assessment and Rubric

The first page of Book Club for A Long Way from Chicago Focus Assessment and Rubric

Focus Assessment and Rubric

Use this six-question assessment to determine whether or not students understand the key concepts associated with Perspective.
Download
Preview
The first page of Asking Questions with A Bad Case of Stripes

Running Record with A Long Way from Chicago

Use this Running Record to assess oral reading fluency with A Long Way from Chicago. Track meaning, structure, and visual accuracy using the first 100 words of the text to determine whether or not this book is a good fit for the readers in your classroom.

Common Core State Standards Alignment
TEKS Alignment
Print
Preview PDF
Preview Digital
Preview Digital
Print

Management Resources - Spanish

The first page of Book Club for A Long Way from Chicago Management Resources

Management Resources - Spanish

The management resources include a Book Club Calendar, conversation prompts, Student Self-Evaluation forms, Reading Response Board (with optional Common Core alignment), and an Expectations for Book Club anchor chart.
Download
Preview

Get Full Access to the Entire Library of Resources when You Join Today!

You don’t need another curriculum—you need smart, supportive tools that build on the stories already in your classroom. BookPagez delivers research-aligned lessons, assessments, and digital tools to make your read-alouds, centers, and guided work more meaningful, more efficient, and more fun.
  • Teach with the favorite children’s books already on your shelf
  • Receive new, research-based materials every week
  • Tap into Digital Classroom for centers, assignments, and monitoring
  • Reclaim your evenings—planning is streamlined & ready to go
  • Stay organized with your personal file cabinet + dashboard
JOIN NOW!
30 Day Risk-Free Guarantee, Cancel Anytime

About the Book

The cover for the book A Long Way from Chicago
Title: A Long Way from Chicago
Author: Richard Peck
Genre: Historical Fiction
Themes: History, Award Winners, Summer, Adventure, Family
ISBN: 9780141303529
Publisher's Summary:
Every summer during the Great Depression, siblings Joey and Mary Alice leave their Chicago home to visit their unconventional Grandma Dowdel in a small Illinois town. Over the course of nine summers, the children find themselves swept into a series of larger-than-life adventures, guided by their grandmother's bold, unpredictable sense of justice and mischief. Grandma repeatedly surprises both her grandchildren and the townsfolk with her creative, often hilarious solutions to local problems—from outsmarting bullies and standing up to corrupt officials, to helping neighbors in need. Through these memorable visits, Joey and Mary Alice experience firsthand the challenges and resilience of rural America during tough times, while learning lessons about self-reliance, compassion, and the importance of family. Featuring a rich historical backdrop, vivid characters, and a blend of humor and heart, A Long Way from Chicago is a perfect choice for classroom discussions about history, character, and community. Teachers will find this book a valuable tool for exploring themes such as coming-of-age, the power of unconventional role models, and the enduring bonds between generations.
Resources
Browse by Book Title Browse Classroom Resources Use the Resource Wizard Teacher Guides Digital Classroom Guides
Customer Service
Get Samples Contact Us Frequently Asked Questions Purchase Orders Login
About Us
Our Story Become a Member
Fine Print
Terms of Use Subscriber Agreement Privacy Policy Refund Policy Disclaimer Digital Resource User Agreement Student Privacy Policy Trademark and Copyright Notice
Content and Downloadable content Copyright ©2010-2025 Thinking Tree Enterprises, LLC. All other trademarks, service marks and trade names referenced on this site are the property of their respective owners. Please see our Terms of Use.

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
©BookPagez.com 2010 - 2023
Fluency / Book Filter
Search by Grade Level
Search by Reading Level
Search by Theme

Reset

Let’s Book Your 30-Minute Clarity Call
Select a day and time that works for you.
[ssa_booking type=clarity-call]

Resource Downloading disabled

Your ability to download resources is currently disabled. Please contact us at support@bookpagez.com

Oops!  It looks Like You're Getting Carried Away. 

When you joined BookPagez, you agreed to follow our Terms of Use. Based on your download activty, it looks like you've gotten carried away.

You are allowed to download resources to use in your classroom for the duration of your subscription. You are not allowed to bulk download resources. In other words, it's against the rules to download all (or most) of the resources. That's stealing, and it's not nice.

Please check your email for a message from us. Reply to the email and let us know what's going on so we can reactivate your account.
In order to continue, please indicate that you agree with the terms above

Get instant access to this resource plus thousands more when you join today.

  • Teach with the best books
  • Always have access to new resources (published every month!)
  • Get full access to Digital Classroom
  • Finally have time to "fit it all in" with super efficient lesson plans
  • Enjoy fast planning tools and stay organized with your personal file cabinet and dashboard
Save 50% for a Limited Time
Get Started
Already a member? Login here.