Teacher’s Guide
Teacher’s Guide
RAINA
TELGEMEIER
LIT CIRCLES
RAINA
TELGEMEIER
LIT CIRCLES
TEACHER’S GUIDE 2
LETTER OF INTRODUCTION ................................................................................. 3
PLOT SUMMARIES .................................................................................................... 4
COMICS TERMS/GLOSSARY ................................................................................... 5
PRE-READING ACTIVITIES ..................................................................................... 6
SMILE DISCUSSION QUESTIONS ........................................................................... 7
SISTERS DISCUSSION QUESTIONS ...................................................................... 8
GHOSTS DISCUSSION QUESTIONS ....................................................................... 9
BIG PICTURE QUESTIONS (ALL THREE NOVELS) .............................................10
PROJECT IDEAS .......................................................................................................11
PAIRING SUGGESTIONS .........................................................................................16
OPPORTUNITIES FOR FURTHER LEARNING ...................................................... 17
TABLE OF CONTENTS
3 TEACHER’S GUIDE
RAINA TELGEMEIER LIT CIRCLE:
LETTER OF INTRODUCTION
Dear Educator,
I have taught all levels in the high school
classroom, from very low freshmen to the highest of
senior AP. So when I was selected to compose a good
deal of the Raina Telgemeier Lending Library Study
Guide, I was hesitant and honestly a bit worried about
crafting ideas, questions, and projects for a younger
target audience.
However, once I dove into stories, I knew that
my fears were completely unwarranted. Good stories,
regardless of the age-level, spark interesting and unique
conversation and discussion. And while I may never
teach these books at the high school level, I can process
the types of content they may yield because they are
human; they come from real emotional places, and if
you’ve ever been a kid, you can relate to something that
Raina writes about in her graphic novels.
While Smile and Sisters have greater links to
each other than they do to Ghosts, the themes of family
and hardship travel throughout. When read separately,
each one of these books opens up a part of our memory
that allows us to travel back to being young; when
read together, they open parts of our memory that link
together to capture a larger part of our childhood. I’m
no longer close to the age of the protagonists in these
novels, and if I can still feel what they feel, I know our
younger students will have no problem relating.
There are many ways in which you can read a
lit circle with your classes. If you only have time for
one, you can offer up the books and allow your students
choices, and shape assessments accordingly. If you have
time for all three, which you might at the speed in which
graphic novels can be read, you can rotate the titles
within the classroom, allowing the students to create
assessments and projects for the books that they have
read, helping the next group experience the book(s) as
they have.
However you choose to teach these Raina
Telgemeier books, know that you are in for some great
discussion about family, friends, hardship, and love.
Many of our students might have had different paths
than Raina, and different experiences throughout life,
but at our core, we can all discuss what it means to love
and share experiences with those around us.
I’m humbled to be able to help you throughout
this journey, and I’m excited to hear about the amazing
pathways that you and your students take.
Happy reading!
-Eric Kallenborn
TEACHER’S GUIDE 4
GHOSTS, SISTERS, & SMILE
PLOT SUMMARIES
Ghosts:
Catrina and her family are moving to the coast of Northern California because her little sister, Maya, is sick.
Cat isn't happy about leaving her friends for Bahìa de la Luna, but Maya has cystic fibrosis and will benefit from the
cool, salty air that blows in from the sea. As the girls explore their new home, a neighbor lets them in on a secret:
There are ghosts in Bahìa de la Luna. Maya is determined to meet one, but Cat wants nothing to do with them. As
the time of year when ghosts reunite with their loved ones approaches, Cat must figure out how to put aside her fears
for her sister's sake — and her own.
Source: https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/lesson-plans/teaching-content/ghosts-teaching-guide/
Smile:
In Smile, Raina just wants to be a normal sixth grader. But one night after Girl Scouts she trips and falls,
severely injuring her two front teeth. What follows is a long and frustrating journey with on-again, off-again braces,
surgery, headgear, and even a retainer with fake teeth attached. And on top of all that, there's still more to deal with:
a major earthquake, boy confusion, and friends who turn out to be not so friendly.
Source: http://www.scholastic.ca/books/view/smilesisters-box-set
Sisters:
In Sisters, Raina can't wait to be a big sister. But once Amara is born, things aren't quite how she expected
them to be. Amara is cute, but she's also a cranky, grouchy baby, and mostly prefers to play by herself. Their
relationship doesn't improve much over the years. But when a baby brother enters the picture and later, when
something doesn't seem right between their parents, they realize they must figure out how to get along. They are
sisters, after all.
Source: http://www.scholastic.ca/books/view/smilesisters-box-set
5 TEACHER’S GUIDE
COMICS
TERMS/GLOSSARY
Bleed - images that run outside the border of the panel
Border - edge or outline of the comic page
Captions - contain information about a scene or character
Colorist - This person gives the comic color, and add to the weight and vibrancy of the image. The colorist is often
responsible for helping set tone and mood via color.
Dialogue Word Balloons - contain character dialogue; communication between/among characters
Emanata - text or icons that represent what is going on in a character's head
Frame - lines or boxes around a panel(s)
Graphic weight - a term that describes the way some images draw the eye more than others, creating a definite focus
using color and shading in various ways
Gutters - space between panels where the reader infers movement and action between panels
Panels - squares or rectangles that contain a single scene
Penciler - Primary artist. This person takes the script and draws the comic. They draw the comic in pencil which then
gets inked and colored later on.
Sound Effect - words that show sound is happening
Thought Balloons - contain a character’s thoughts
Writer - The writer writes the story and has the overall vision of how the story will go. They write the dialogue and
how the story will progress.
TEACHER’S GUIDE 6
PRE-READING ACTIVITY
WHAT DOES IT MEAN
TO BE A SIBLING?
Whether you have siblings or not, you can understand just how powerful of a force they can be. For some of us, our
siblings determine what we like, who we hang out with, and ultimately, whom we become. And for others, siblings are
something we long for, having never experienced the joy or terror of having one ourselves.
During this project, you will come to a better understanding of what it means to be a sibling and what it means to be
affected by one.
For this project, you will need to interview three different classmates: one only child, one with only one sibling, and
one with multiple siblings.
You will ask the three classmates the same five questions and write/type their answers (but first, answer them
yourself):
1.) What does it mean to be a sibling?
2.) How do siblings affect a family as a whole? Why do you think that?
3.) Do parents with more than one child have a favorite? Why do you think that?
4.) What makes siblings argue and fight? Why do you think that?
5.) What is the best and worst part of being a sibling (even if you do not have one, what do you think)?
After you have the answers, look at them, re-read them, spend some time thinking about them, and create a poem
based on what you have learned from your classmates. The poem can be whatever shape/structure that your teacher
determines.
Feel free to use actual lines from your classmates’ answers!
When your poems are done, take turns reading them to the class. See what similarities and differences come out.
As a class, discuss what you have learned.
If poems aren’t your jam, consider creating a Venn Diagram with your results. Compare yours with your classmates,
noting similarities and differences.
7 TEACHER’S GUIDE
SMILE DISCUSSION
QUESTIONS
1. Why do you think Raina Telgemeier wrote an entire
graphic novel about her mouth? Is the book about more
than that? What do you think?
2. What is the relationship like between Raina and her
sister? How do we know?
3. Do you think the title Smile is a good one? If you
could re-name it, what would you call it?
4. Throughout the book, do you think that Raina's
friends are unfair to her? Why or why not?
5. Why does Raina use the jagged lines to break apart the
panels on pages 66-67?
6. Some pages like 64 and 74 are only one image. Why
do you think Raina did this when c reating Smile?
7. As a kid, Raina is really worried about being judged
by the other kids in her class about her braces and teeth
issues. Can you relate to a time where you felt strange
or out of place because of something out of your control?
What did you do to deal with it?
8. A lot of the panels have very simple backgrounds (p.
105-106, 108-109 e.g.). Why do you think Raina creates
them this way?
9. What do you think about the cover? Would you change
it if you could?
10. This is an award-winning book. If you had to explain
to people why this book has won awards, what would you
tell them?
11. In the book, Raina finds herself interested in boys.
Do her crushes feel real? How are these situations similar
or different than real life?
12. Throughout the book, what do you think Raina wants
the most?
TEACHER’S GUIDE 8
SISTERS DISCUSSION
QUESTIONS
1. Do you have any siblings? Do you get along with
them? If you do not have siblings, do you wish that you
did? Why or why not?
2. Explain the relationship between Raina and her sister.
3. Page 28 contains a very interesting layout. What do
you like or not like about this page? How is it different
from the rest?
4. How do the sisters annoy each other? Does this seem
the way that normal siblings act?
5. Throughout the book, how do the parents react to the
sisters’ behavior toward each other?
6. Why does Raina want a little sister? How are things
different than she anticipates?
7. How does the trip to visit family differ from past visits
that they have had?
8. Have you ever had a friend or family member that has
changed since you have known them? How did they
change? How did that make you feel?
9. Which sister do you relate to the most? Why?
10. As the creator, how does Raina show the panic of the
lost snake (p.151-53)?
11. Anything that follows the story at the back of a comic
or graphic novel is called “back matter.” Look at the
photo album at the back of the book. Why do you think
Raina put that in the back matter?
12. Why does Raina discuss pets so much throughout the
book?
9 TEACHER’S GUIDE
GHOSTS DISCUSSION
QUESTIONS
1. Do you believe in ghosts? Why or why not?
2. Why do you think people are afraid of ghosts?
3. The book opens with the main characters, Cat and
Maya, moving to a new city because it helps with Maya’s
illness. Compare and contrast how the two sisters handle
the move to a new place.
4. Thinking about this move, what does how Cat
and Maya handle this change tell us about their
personalities?
5. Thinking of your other experience with Telgemeier’s
books, why do you think she often writes about the
relationships between sisters?
6. One important aspect of Ghosts is the importance of
traditions and culture. What are some of your family
or cultural traditions? Why are they important to your
family or culture?
7. If you had to pinpoint the lesson/lessons that Maya
and Cat learn from the ghosts of Bahía de la Luna, what
do you think that is? Where in the book do they learn
this?
8. Another important topic in Ghosts is death and how
we deal with it. How do the ghosts help Cat cope with
death? How do they help Maya deal with the possibility
of her own death?
10. Throughout the story we see that Cat feels like an
outsider in her hometown, and also in her own culture
because she didn’t grow up celebrating those traditions.
When is a time where you've felt out of place or different?
How did you deal with that?
11. Have you ever lost someone important to you?
How did you deal with that loss? How would you help
someone else cope with the loss of someone important to
them?
12. Compare Cat and Maya from Ghosts to Raina
and Amara from Smile and Sisters. What are some
similarities/differences you see between the two older
and younger sisters? Their relationships?
13. A common phrase/idea that is woven throughout
the book is “just go with it.” Why was this repeated
throughout the book? How did each character benefit
from this lesson?
TEACHER’S GUIDE 10
BIG PICTURE QUESTIONS
FOR ALL THREE NOVELS
1. How is a graphic novel different from a traditional
book (besides one is mostly pictures and one is mostly
words)?
2. What is the biggest similarity found in all three books?
The biggest differences?
3.Is the art the same in all three books? What is different
in the art? What is similar?
4. Which of the three books do you relate to the most?
Why?
5. If you were going to make one of these books into a
movie, which one would you choose and why?
6. Which page of each book contains your favorite art?
Why is that your favorite page?
7. Thinking of your other experience with Telgemeier’s
books, why do you think she often writes about the
relationships between sisters?
8. The Ghosts cover has a different feel than the other
two books. If you were going to change the cover to look
more like Sisters and Smile, how would you change it?
9. You have to put ONLY ONE of these three books into a
time-capsule to let future generations know about what
it’s like to be a kid. Which one do you use? And if none,
why?
10. What year of your life would make the best book?
Why?
11. While Raina’s drawings are fairly simple, they tell a
good story. Explain why simple art can tell a complex
story.
12. Read the back of each book. Explain which of the
books’ back covers gives us the best idea of the story
inside.
11 TEACHER’S GUIDE
PROJECT IDEA #1:
HUMOR WRITING
(This brainstorming assignment can accompany many of the general projects as a tool
to think and write creatively and humorously.)
There is a lot of humor in the three books, and if we are going to try and write a creative piece based on one or
more of the graphic novels, we should try to work on our humor!
This short brainstorming project will help you think creatively and hopefully bring out the funny in you!
The first thing we will need is a topic. Any topic will do, but a topic that relates to your story or idea is better
because that way, you will be developing humor that you can use in your story. For example’s sake, let’s keep it sim-
ple with a few examples like “Family,” “School,” or “Road Trips.”
We take a topic that you would like to develop, and we plug it into an amazing graphic organizer that was
developed by Judy Carter in her book The Comedy Bible.
Topic: School
Hard
Scary
Stupid
Weird
TEACHER’S GUIDE 12
PROJECT IDEA #1:
HUMOR WRITING
We fill in each box with as many items that we can think of that would be Hard, Weird, Scary, or Stupid about
any aspect of “School” that we think up. At this point, we are not trying to be funny, we are just trying to be honest,
and we are trying to get down as many ideas as possible! Let’s see what we can come up with:
Topic: School
Hard
-Homework
-Ridingthebus
-Wakingup
-Listeningtoteachers
-Tonsofreading
-Beingyourself
Scary
-Askingsomeoneout
-ThePrincipal
-Schoollunches
-Ridingthebus
-Bullies
-Schooldances
-Gettingsick
Stupid
-Grades
-Makingposters
-Groupprojects
-Parentspickingyouup
-Allschoolannouncements
-Classpets
-Someteachers
-Schoollunches
-Gym
-Healthclass
13 TEACHER’S GUIDE
PROJECT IDEA #1:
HUMOR WRITING
That’s a pretty good start! Now, we can take one of the items on the list and use the graphic organizer to work
that idea out further. Watch! And remember, we are not trying to be funny, just honest…
Topic: Teacher
See! When we just did a brainstorm about “Teachers,” we got a lot more specific, and many of these ideas
could make great concepts or jokes. Maybe the teacher in the story has terrible breath, and the kids almost pass out
because of it, and he/she only drinks from an old mug that did say “Number One Teacher,” but it’s so old it just says
“Number Te ch,” and all of the students have inside jokes about “Number Tech the English teacher!,” a very lame
superhero.
Hard
-Theycanbeloud
-Theycanbemean
-Theymightfindithardtorelateto
students
Scary
-Badbreath
-Theycanbemean
-Substitutes
-Whentheyassignlotsof
homework
Stupid
-Theiroutfits
-Theytrytobecool
-Whentheydateeachother
-Theircoffeemugs
Weird
-Whattheythinkiscool
-Thattheyarefriendswithother
teachers
-Whattheyeat
-Whendotheygotothebathroom?
TEACHER’S GUIDE 14
PROJECT IDEA #1:
HUMOR WRITING
Use the blank form provided to develop a few ideas of your own! Remember, be honest; don’t try to be funny,
but have fun! Share your concepts and ideas with others to work on them. Having a comedy buddy is essential!
Topic:
Notes on which of these concepts would make good joke ideas:
Hard
Weird
Stupid
Scary
15 TEACHER’S GUIDE
LIT. CIRCLE GENERAL
PROJECT IDEAS
Characterization: This activity is perfect for introducing
or assessing characterization! Have each group identify
the main or major character(s) in their books. Have them
determine all they can about the characters based on the
following criteria:
1. How they look
2. What they do
3. Their environment
4. What they say
5. What others say about them
Then you can have them complete a handout with
specific assumptions they make about the character(s)
and compare them to the other groups. Look for
similarities and differences. Is there a style that Raina
seems to employ across all the books? How does the
Raina character change from Smile to Sisters for example.
Is Catrina somehow like Raina?
Hero's Journey: Have students look at the "hero's
journey" across their specific novel.
Themes: Have the teams mix up and put a one
representative from each book into three person teams.
Have them explain the nature of their novel including
plot, character, and motifs. Do the novels share any
thematic elements? Each smaller group should create a
posterboard or digital presentation that explains their
findings.
Dream Cast Project: Have each team cast the movie
version of their book (I wonder why they aren't already
movies) and create a movie poster for the book including
the stars they have chosen. Alternately, students could
actually film a small section of the book and post it on
Youtube. I think that the low tech special effects could
be cool!
Silent Socratic Seminar: Silent Socratic Seminar: after
the students read the three books, select 3-6 of the
“Big Picture Questions,” depending how many kids are
in the class and the size of the groups that you would
like. Write one question on the center of a large sheet
of poster paper/board and place it in the middle of a
table or group of desks. Have the first group of students
write an answer to each question on the paper. After
5-8 minutes, have the students rotate stations and at
each station they have to respond to the question on the
paper and also to one of the comments that a student has
made on the paper.
To differentiate the groups, have each group use a
different color marker. When you are done, put the
posters up around the room, have the students read all of
the posters, and have them help you select a group that
did the best job responding! Reward that group with
treats.
Essay Writing: Smile is how we fit into our current world
at large, while Sisters is about how we fit into our smaller
world, and Ghosts is about fitting into a bigger world as
we grow up. Have the students write an essay in which
they discuss the ideas of interconnectedness. How do
our worlds collide and inter-mingle? What does it mean
to be a part of multiple worlds?
Mini-Comic Project: Select a moment in your life that is
thematically similar to one that is experienced in one of
the three books. With help from the teacher, create a 3-4
page comic book script, planning out exactly how you
would want your comic to look.
Mapmaking: What trip would you like to take? Plot out
your journey and anticipate the trials and tribulations
you would experience with your crazy family in a 2-3
page story.
Fan Fiction: Select a unique character from each of the
three books and write a short story in which they interact
with each other. What would they do? What would they
say? Would they get along?
TEACHER’S GUIDE 16
PAIRING
SUGGESTIONS
Diary of a Wimpy Kid (Books and Film)
This series tell the adventures of Greg Heffley, a kid
growing up, dealing with many of the same school and
home issues that we are exposed to as readers through
Raina’s books. With over ten books in the Wimpy
universe, it’s probable that the readers of Smile, Sisters,
and Ghosts have some exposure to the series, even if it’s
just though the films. Diary of a Wimpy Kid is a natural
companion piece to the Raina books primarily because
they tell the boy’s perspective of growing up with
difficulty.
Ms. Marvel (Comic/Graphic Novel Series)
Tossed into the world of superhero greatness, Marvel’s
Ms. Marvel, written by G. Willow Wilson, has to come to
terms with being a teenage girl with the responsibilities
of the world on her shoulders. She has to save the city,
pass high school, and navigate her crazy demanding
family. While our protagonists in the Raina books do not
have to worry about saving the world, readers can find lot
of similarities when discussing character motivations and
drive.
Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events
(Book Series)
This unique book series tells the tale of the Baudelaire
children, orphans, sent to live with their greedy uncle
after the unfortunate demise of their parents. The
children have to band together in their quest for mental
and physical survival. The sibling relationships found
in this series can easily be paired with the familiar
relationships that are found in Smile, Sisters, and Ghosts.
Matilda (Book and Film)
The classic story, Matilda, by Roald Dahl seems to be a
perfect fit for the Raina books if you are looking to find a
character that works as the yin to Raina’s yang. In a way,
Matilda is the opposite of Raina’s protagonists: popular,
confident, and without a real family. Reading these tales
side by side explores the many sides of the world that we
can be born into.
Sunny Side Up and Swing It, Sunny (Graphic Novels)
Jennifer and Matthew Holm deliver a tale of familial love,
destruction, and redemption in these two books. Sunny,
our protagonist, deals with many of the same issues that
Raina's protagonists do, and seeing as they are all about
the same age, it makes sense that these books would pair
nicely. They would make for a nice compare/contrast
essay or just an extension of thematic exploration.
17 TEACHER’S GUIDE
OPPORTUNITIES FOR
FURTHER LEARNING
Raina Telgemeier Discusses Her Novels at Book Expo America 2016: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5lasrXa-
Ma7k
NPR Discusses the Tough Topic Surrounding Ghosts: http://www.npr.org/2016/09/11/493183503/ghosts-takes-
on-a-tough-topic-for-children
Cool FAQ Page From Raina’s Website – Find Out Lots About of Unknowns About Our Author:
http://goraina.com/about/
Sisters and Smile: Fun Trivia Quizzes: http://www.funtrivia.com/playquiz/quiz3706252a6d780.html http://www.
funtrivia.com/playquiz/quiz3703182a64798.html
Cool Graphic Novel Reading Guides from Raina’s Website: http://goraina.com/reading-guides/
Here is a Collection of Family Friendly Poems about Sisterhood: https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poems/fam-
ily/sister/
Lit Circle Introduction and Planning Ideas from NCTE: http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/les-
son-plans/literature-circles-getting-started-19.html
TEACHER’S GUIDE 18
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
AUTHOR
Eric Kallenborn
Igniting Imaginations.
POPCULTURECLASSROOM.ORG