Number the Stars By: Lois Lowry

Novel Scavenger Hunt Check out the book and answer the following questions 1)1) Title of Book 2)2) Author 3)3) Publisher 4)4) Published Date 5)5) Number of Pages 6)6) Number of Chapters 7)7) Awards 8)8) Based on the summary, how would you rate your interest in this novel?

Think about the title… The title of the novel is Number the Stars.  What do you think that means?  Why would someone use that title for their book?

Summary  Ten year old Annemarie Johansen and her best friend Ellen Rosen often think about life before the war. It's 1943 and their life in Copenhagen is filled with school, food shortages, and the Nazi soldiers marching in their town.  The Jew of Denmark are being "relocated", so Ellen moves in with the Annemarie’s family and pretends to be part of the family to keep her safe from harm.

About the Author  Lois Lowry oBorn in Hawaii in oReceived Newbery medals for Number the Stars and The Giver. oIdea for this book came from a childhood friend who told her about her experiences during the Holocaust.

History behind the story…  The Holocaust began in  Adolph Hitler and the Nazis began putting people in concentration camps.  Most of the prisoners were Jews.  The horrible Holocaust finally ended in  About 12 million people were killed during the Holocaust, 6 million of them being Jews.

The German Occupation Lois Lowry gives us only a glimpse of what happened the day the Nazi Armies invaded Denmark and why the Danes did not offer much resistance to the invading forces. Surrendering as they did wasn't easy and most Danes had no love of the soldiers that now controlled their country and threatened their freedom.

The Characters The Johansens Mr. Rosen Mrs. Rosen LiseAnnemarieKristi The Rosens (Jewish) Mr. Johansen Mrs. Johansen Ellen

Setting of Number the Stars  Copenhagen, Denmark in 1943  WWII is taking place throughout Europe.  The escape plan is to go from Denmark to Sweden.

Themes When you see the following themes from the story, write down a few words or statements that come to mind. BBravery FFriendship PPride

Quickwrite Many people run into situations, on a daily basis, that require courage to stand up for someone else or something you believe in. Think about a situation in your own life when this happened. Write about what it and what you did.

Take a Glimpse into the past  The next two slides are going to be pictures from WWII.  You will be prompted on what to think and write about.  After each picture is written about, be prepared to discuss your thoughts.

Polish children imprisoned in Auschwitz look out from behind the barbed wire fence. (July 1944)

Joseph Schleifstein, a 5 year old survivor of Buchenwald. (After May 1945)

Now you’re ready… You now have the background information necessary to being Number the Stars. Discussions have included characters, setting, themes, and author’s purpose. Good luck with the novel and enjoy reading!