Reading Methods
Child Reading Alone
Read to the place in the CHOICES story where the main character has a difficult choice to make. Read all three choices and decide which one you think is best. Turn to the color-coded page that matches the choice you selected and read the story to its conclusion.
When you have finished reading, turn to “Questions for Thought” in the back of the book. Read “Beginning Questions” as well as the questions that correspond with the choice you selected. Give yourself a day to think about your choice and the way the story ended. The next day, select a different choice and see how the story ending changes. Once again, read the corresponding questions in the back of the book. After you have read all three choices and the corresponding questions, read “Ending Questions.”
Adult Reading to a Child
Read to the place in the CHOICES story where the main character has a difficult choice to make. Carefully read all three choices and then ask the child which one he/she thinks is best. Turn to the color-coded page that matches the selected choice and read the story to its conclusion.
When you have finished, turn to “Questions for Thought” at the back of the book. Read and discuss “Beginning Questions” as well as the questions which correspond with the choice that was made. Allow the child to “live with” their choice for at least a day before making another selection. When all three choices have been read in the manner described above, read “Ending Questions.” Even when a child makes the best choice on the first or second reading, it is beneficial to read all three of the endings. Reading all of the endings will be entertaining as well as educational, and will also help to underscore that different choices create different outcomes and that the best choice creates the best outcome.
Adult Reading to a Classroom
Read to the place in the story where the main character has a difficult choice to make. Ask your students to listen carefully as you read all three choices aloud.
After reading the choices, ask your students to put their heads down on their desks and close their eyes, or put their heads against their knees if they are seated on the floor. Ask them to listen carefully as you read the choices aloud once again. Tell them when they hear the choice they believe is best, to raise their hand and keep it up until you have time to count the votes. Ideally, when students are seated on the floor, their arms and shoulders should not be touching, so the movement of another child raising his or her hand will not influence their votes.
When all three choices have been read and the votes counted, ask the students to lift their heads and open their eyes. When announcing the winning choice, it is always good to remind your students that no matter which choice they made, there were others in the class who voted the same way.
After announcing the winning choice, turn to the corresponding color-coded page and read the story to its conclusion. As is often the case, the choice receiving the most votes may not be the best choice. In that event it is important to remind your students that just because a choice received the most votes does not necessarily mean it is the best choice, and only after reading all three endings will they know for certain which choice was best.
When you have finished reading, turn to “Questions for Thought” in the back of the book. Read and discuss “Beginning Questions” as well as the questions that correspond with the winning choice. Allow the students to “live with” their choice for at least a day before reading their second choice, and another day before reading the third choice. Each time read and discuss the corresponding “Questions for Thought.” After all three choices have been read in the manner described above, read “Ending Questions.” When you have read all of the endings and all of the questions in the back of the book, ask your students if they have questions of their own or if they would like to share similar choices they have made in their own life.
Illustrations
Endorsements
Owen’s Choice was a terrific book because we got to decide how to end it . . .
Many of our students make tremendous decisions on a daily basis. Living in poverty is always difficult, and these decisions essentially make an impact on the community, the family and the students future. It is so refreshing to be able to choose books that allow the students to think though their choices and see the outcomes of their decisions. Thank you…
… I love the book, Our school is going to have it at our school book fair… I can’t wait to see the rest of the books in the series.
. . . I am 9 years old. I really enjoyed the voting part. I also like the book because it tells you that you should not smash pumpkins . . .
Hi Wink,
Just warning you not to fly into a bug zapper.
Have a nice week.
… I want, and will collect all of your books. And when my baby sister is four, I think she will love it!…. Your story is the greatest I have ever heard. I totally love it.
… I was moved to tears, literally, as I read the stories to both of my boys for the very first time. The way your books unfold is marvelous!
I’ve come across an excellent book, Owen’s Choice…. besides being a very well-written story about a child trying to fit into a new place, it is a book that will help teach children how to make good choices.
The world needs more of this, so please don’t stop.
We really like Wink. We think maybe he’s the conscience. We can’t wait for your next book to come out . . . your book teaches a good lesson.
. . . Owen’s Choice is a really good book. . . I loved that it had three different choices . . . that is a good idea for the middle of a story. I want to read it again.
Thank you for letting us vote on the choices . . . I like that you wrote a book that teaches a lesson. My favorite character was Wink because he was funny.