Moby Dick Lesson Ideas and Resources

It wasn't long until my six year old started picking out books about Moby Dick. To be completely truthful he picked up the first book because he thought it was about Jonah. He was quite disappointed to find out it wasn't, but gave the book a try anyway. After his first time through with his older sister reading, he was hooked. It didn't hurt that his brother had read Moby Dick last year.

Since he is interested, I thought I'd start looking for some lesson ideas and resources. What I have found is listed below.


Books

• Moby Dick: Chasing the Great White Whale, by Eric A. Kimmel (picture book)
• Moby Dick: Based on the Novel by Herman Melville, retold by Lew Sayre Schwartz (comic books style)
• Moby Dick, by Henry Melville (junior classic version, less than 200 pages)
• Moby Dick, Henry Melville  (actual 700+ page book)
• Moby Dick, by Henry Melville (read it online at The Literature Network)

Whale Activities for Younger Kids

• Make a stuffed paper bag whale following these instructions.
• Or, try making this whale from a white tube sock.
• Rather make a whale from paper? Instructions on an origami whale are found here.
• Color one of these whale picture pages.
• Try this free game called Whale Word Match by Learning Games for Kids.

On Line Free Lesson Plans for Older Kids

• The Great Book Foundation offers a synopsis of the novel and discussion questions here.
• Discovery Education offers two free lesson plans for high schoolers reading Moby Dick. The first is a literature guide with journaling activities. It is found here. The second centers on whether Captain Ahab was a tragic hero or not. The free lesson plan includes vocabulary and suggestions for debate. You can find it here. 

Related Post
Ships, Navigation, and Whaling

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