2019 update: Full ebooks available
As of October 2014, I made the in-depth, professionally designed ebook guide for Cajas de cartón available for sale. In the spring of 2019, the Esperanza renace guide was released. You can purchase either guide or get the guide to La ciudad de las bestias for free on my ebooks page.
The ebooks improve on the Google docs by:
- eliminating irrelevant or shallow comprehension questions
- asking for more critical thinking
- including a key vocabulary list for each chapter
- offering technology integration tips, connections to core content, cultural comparison questions
- appealing more to students in an attractive ebook format
You can always freely access the comprehension guides I wrote for the memoir Cajas de cartón and the novel Esperanza renace; just scroll down for the original blog post
For a great description of how Allison’s experience teaching this book changed between the plain question lists and the elegant ebook guide, see her posts Planning for Cajas de cartón and Literature Conversation Circles.
Cajas de cartón: a chapter-by-chapter guide to the memoir by Francisco Jiménez
This 59-page illustrated reader’s guide is such a vastly different resource from the original comprehension questions that you’ll barely recognize they’re from the same person. For all the details and information on how to purchase the reproducible guide (including via purchase order) for $39.95, check out the Cajas page. Or if you already know you want it, simply click here:
Just looking for something to go with the original short story “Cajas de cartón,” which is chapter 9 in the memoir? You can get that too, on the resources page, for $6.95.
Original blog post with link to comprehension questions:
Quite some time ago, I posted my reading guides for the Allende novel Ciudad de las bestias, which my students read in their fourth year (AP). I was sure I had done the same for the reading guides I wrote for my Spanish 3 books. The Ciudad guides have gotten some attention lately from the Edmodo group Spanish Teacher Share, so I thought I’d post the other two sets as well, but it would seem I didn’t post them after all.
In the fall of Spanish 3, we read the book Cajas de cartón, a series of autobiographical short stories by Francisco Jiménez. “Panchito” writes about his experiences crossing the border into California illegally as a child and then growing up in the migrant worker culture of that state. Warning, this book is not happy, but it’s such a great picture of the life of a migrant child. I also love that if you don’t finish the book, it doesn’t matter, as each chapter is a story in itself.
Reading guides for Cajas de cartón. –
(Keep scrolling for the edit!)
In the spring of Spanish 3, we read Esperanza renace, a tale loosely based on Pam Muñoz Ryan’s grandmother. It’s a Mexican version of The Little Princess, but in the end she doesn’t get her dad or her money back. Instead, she learns what really matters in life and how to be content and joyful through trials.
We don’t finish the novel since I started reading exclusively in class (out-of-class reading was frustrating my students too much) so I recently added a “wrap-up” guide for the end so they can finish out the plot.
**Edit July 2013**
You are still welcome to freely download the comprehension questions for all chapters in Cajas de cartón in one file here (and/or take a look at the sample of Chapter 3 of the vastly improved ebook and see here for information on purchasing that) and Esperanza renace in one file here. The documents now contain all regular and bonus questions in one streamlined file.
Here is a link to an electronic “matamoscas” game that I play with my kids before reading the title story in the book Cajas de carton. I project it against a screen and we play for a few minutes with me either shouting out the words or describing what I see (a more demanding listening experience) and two teams racing to touch the right part of the picture. If we happen to be in the computer lab then the kids can log in and race each other.
http://www.purposegames.com/game/d4823c2a
Thanks very much!
Thanks for sharing your guides for these books. I read Esperanza Renace for the first time this summer and what a great book to teach not only Spanish but other life lessons. Unfortunately, I’ll have to wait until next year to get a class set of the book.
My Sp4 students read the short story “Cajas de Cajón” (ch9) followed by “Naranjas” written by Angela McEwan-Alvarado, another sad story. My students usually want to know why I choose such sad stories.
I remember learning in college Spanish and Latin American Lit classes that very few stories turn out happy!
Are your reading guides for these works still available? I was not able to access them from your website. Thanks.
The documents are set to be viewable by anyone with the link. It should work if you click on the words “one file here” in the new edit at the bottom of the post. In case you’re still having trouble, here it is:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1IWztd1SFWddQ3mTzasYndUNQQNROKJ4360Z8o6ZCkQU/edit
That was for Cajas de cartón. For Esperanza renace:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1EVqEGhhRYjNsLCVeTmuSgmYE8UcUn8Rc7giJ4iMbbRI/edit
[…] If you’ve ever used the “Recent Popular Posts” section on the right side of the blog, you’ve probably noticed that one very not recent post stays up there. I really ought to title the section “recently popular posts” because it actually lists the top six posts that have been accessed the most in the past six months or so. The one “old” post that is always on that list is the post linking to my chapter questions for the short novels Cajas de cartón and Esperanza renace. […]
Have you updated these wonderful resources lately?
Hi Diane, I just caught your comment on Facebook too – I still have Esperanza slated for my next reading guide ebook but I’ve been terribly slow about it – 2016 filled my plate too full in so many ways! I’ve taken a break from working on Esperanza to get the Novice Viewer’s Guide to the movie Canela finished and expect to have that out this summer, and then Esperanza is next in line. I’m so glad you’ve gotten some good use out of my resources!
Best,
Sara-Elizabeth
[…] 10. The original Cajas de cartón & Esperanza renace post […]