The Family Under the Bridge (Natalie Savage Carlson)

In this State Standards-aligned Literature Kit™, we divide the novel by chapters or sections and feature reading comprehension and vocabulary questions. In every chapter, we include Before You Read and After You Read questions. The Before You Read activities prepare students for reading by setting a purpose for reading. They stimulate background knowledge and experience, and guide students to make connections between what they know and what they will learn. The After You Read activities check students’ comprehension and extend their learning. Students are asked to give thoughtful consideration of the text through creative and evaluative short-answer questions and journal prompts. Also included are writing tasks, graphic organizers, comprehension quiz, test prep, word search, and crossword to further develop students’ critical thinking and writing skills, and analysis of the text. About the Novel: The Family Under the Bridge is a Newbery Honor winning story about the Calcet family — a mother and her three children who— end up living under a bridge on the Seine River. Here, they befriend the carefree Parisian hobo, Armand. When two nosy women appear at their makeshift home, and it appears that the authorities have been summoned, Armand takes the family to live with a community of gypsies. Here, they are befriended and their relationship with the old hobo deepens. After promising the children a new home for Christmas, Armand decides his only option is to seek employment, and he manages to get a job as the caretaker of an apartment building, which offers the family a place to stay. Here, they determine to live as one big family, with Armand serving as the grandfather the children never had. All of our content is aligned to your State Standards and are written to Bloom’s Taxonomy.