A Kid for Jack

A Kid for Jack

Written and Illustrated by: Fourth Grade Students of

 Piney Grove Elementary School in Kernersville, NC

Grade Level: first – third grade

Genre: Nonfiction-Memoir

Have you ever seen a dog walking along the side of the road? Have you ever wondered does that dog have a home to go to? Have you ever thought about adopting a pet? There are numerous dogs and cats that are homeless and wondering the streets of every city and town. Many of these animals have either escaped from their home and are lost or have never had a home of their own. In this story we meet Jack, a one year old dog who has never had a home of his own. All Jack wants is a kid to play with him, feed him, and scratch his belly. Jack finds his forever home, with three loving children who Jack adores.

            The story begins when we meet Jack.  Jack is a stray dog, who does not have a collar because he does not have a home. Jack eats food out of garbage cans for his meals. All Jack wants is a kid to scratch his belly and feed him. Jack wanders the streets; one day he gets hit by a car. A woman finds Jack, although Jack is in pain, he hopes this woman will take him to his new home. Jack falls asleep and when he wakes up he is in the animal hospital with a veterinarian looking over him. The vet explains to Jack that he needs his hip operated on and that he needs to rest. The doctor gives Jack medicine that makes him fall asleep, Jack dreams of finding a kid of his own. The next day Jack could not stand, he was on medicine for pain and to keep the infections away. The people at the animal hospital helped him until he was able to walk again. When Jack felt better he was sent to a prison, where inmates trained dogs in a program called The New Leash on Life. Jack was scared for the first night sleeping in his crate. The next morning Jack met his trainer. The trainer gave Jack treats and scratched his belly whenever he learned a new trick. Jack liked his trainer and the new dog friends he made at the program. Jack learned to stay, sit, heel, and lie down. When it was time for graduation, Jack did not graduate. His hip was not healed yet, so Jack got to spend another four weeks with his trainer. When Jack was healed and ready to be adopted he was brought to a fair with other dogs. Many families were attracted to the cute little puppies, not many families were interested in Jack, because he was seven dog years old. A little girl and her brother came up to Jack. Jack liked them, he gave them kisses and they scratched his belly. A couple days later the girl, her brother, and the rest of their family came to the prison. Jack was playing with the family and their other dog. The family decided Jack was a good fit for them and they adopted him. Jack said good-bye to his trainer and welcomed his new family with doggy kisses, as they welcomed him with a home, food, and endless games of fetch and belly scratches.

            The authors of A Kid for Jack are a fourth grade class from North Carolina. The class also illustrated the story. The students place impact on certain parts with the use of strong details. The story is a combination of short phrases and long, detailed sentences. The flow of the text is seamless, there is no awkward moments or parts that are too confusing. The vocabulary used in the book that may be confusing for younger readers. These words are surrounded context clues, and also visual clues through the illustrations to help decipher the meaning of those more difficult tier two words. The authors use third person, which allows readers to feel as though they are experiencing the story and memories with the characters as they are reading. The students who illustrated the story conceptualized many of the key events of the story throughout his detailed illustrations. The students used a variety of mediums throughout the story. The use of different mediums allows readers to interpret the meaning behind the illustrations. It is however vital that reader’s notice the small and subtle details throughout the illustrations. Many of these details are important in grasping all of the information needed to decipher the meaning behind the print.

            I would use this story in a third grade classroom. This story would be used to show students how writing is a form of expression and that just because they are students does not mean that their writing is not valuable. The students who wrote this book would be used as models to show students that if you work hard and put effort into your writing that it could be published and one day sit next to a book by their favorite author in different classrooms all over the world. I would also use this story to explain third person point of view. The authors write what Jack is thinking even though he is not explicitly expressing himself. Overall, this is a book with a happy ending that can be used in multiple ways in a variety of classrooms throughout different grade levels.

Common Core Standards:

• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.3.3 Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.3.3a Establish a situation and introduce a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.3.3b Use dialogue and descriptions of actions, thoughts, and feelings to develop experiences and events or show the response of characters to situations.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.3.3c Use temporal words and phrases to signal event order.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.3.3d Provide a sense of closure.