Global Read Aloud is one of my absolute favourite projects of the whole school year. This incredible, global project, which is the work of Pernille Ripp, gives students and teachers around the world a meaningful project to explore rich literature, connect with others and leverage the power of technology to enhance those connections. I’ve been participating since 2014 and every year I’m in awe of how much students and teachers can learn by connecting and collaborating with others. The sharing of perspectives, the teamwork and the joy of reading all make Global Read Aloud special.
The last couple of years, I’ve been trying to contribute to the amazing collection of resources that teachers share each year to support others with ideas and inspiration for Global Read Aloud activities. My go-to GRA activity is to connect classrooms via Padlet or Flipgrid for weekly discussions about the text. I’ve generated a potential list of discussion questions for Planet Omar: Accidental Trouble Magnet and shared them below for anyone who might wish to use them. They can easily be copied and pasted onto your Padlet board, Flipgrid topics or wherever else you need them.
Week 1: Chapters 1-4
Notice the character sketches for each member of Omar’s family. Using a similar style, create one for yourself! Share your sketch with partner classes.
Have you ever moved? What was your experience like? Was it the same as Omar’s moving experience in any way?
Re-read the list of “4 Things that Happen Every Science Sunday” in chapter 4. Create a list of 4 things that commonly happen in your family or classroom. Give your list a fun title and share it with others.
Week 2: Chapters 5-8
The author uses lots of descriptive language in this text. For example, Omar says “When I woke up on Monday morning, I felt like my lungs were pushing air out of me and not taking any back in, and my stomach was a GIANT, HEAVY, ROCK, making it impossible for me to get out of bed” – p. 30
Find some other examples of descriptive language. Then, try out your own descriptive language to describe an object or experience!
Omar imagines a dragon taking him to school. Imagine your own fun and interesting way to get to school. Draw it and/or describe it, then record a video showing/telling us about your method of transportation.
Week 3: Chapters 9-12
Daniel is repeatedly bothering Omar and being unkind. Omar chooses not to say anything. What else could Omar do? How could he handle this situation? What are some strategies you have for dealing with people who are being unkind?
Omar’s mother is kind to Mrs. Rogers even though she has been rude to Omar’s family. Share a story of when someone did something kind for you. What happened? How did you feel?
Week 4: Chapters 13-16
We learn about the Ramadan traditions of Omar’s family in this part of the book.
Share a tradition from your own family
OR Research a tradition or celebration from another culture or location and share what you learned.
If you do not celebrate Ramadan, research more about it and share 3 interesting things you find out.
Week 5: Chapters 17-20
Omar takes a field trip to the science museum. What is an awesome field trip (in real life or virtual field trip) that you have been on? Tell us about it!
OR Tell us the coolest, most extraordinary field trip you could imagine taking with your class this year.
Omar finds out that a lot of difficult things have been going on for Daniel’s family. How do you think his family’s situation might be making Daniel feel? Do you think this might be part of why Daniel has been acting so unkindly?
Week 6: Chapters 21-End
Omar says “I like how every single person is different.” (p.199) What makes you unique and different from others?
If you had to choose one lesson that a reader could learn from this book, what would it be?
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