CHALLENGING WORDS
adventure
America
China
grandparents
journey
language
playtime
reunion
traveled
understand
SUMMARY
Sarunna, a young Chinese girl, moves to America with her parents.
Living in a new place attending a new school, this story shows her
ability to make friends and overcome challenges.
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--- Conversation Questions---
(1) Retell your favorite part of the story.
(Answer) Any logical answer.
(Follow Up) Explain why it is favorite part.
(2) Imagine you are Sarunna, what feelings would you have about moving to a new place?
(Answer) Any logical answer.
(Follow Up) Have you ever moved before?
(3) Guess how Sarunna felt when she found out her new friend was moving.
(Answer) Any logical answer.
(Follow Up) Tell me how you would feel?
(4) Compare a time you met a new friend to when Sarunna met Ali.
(Answer) Any logical answer.
(Follow Up) Do you like to make new friends?
(5) Define ‘journey’.
(Answer) A traveling from one place to another; take a trip to a far distance.
(Follow Up) Make a sentence using the word ‘journey’.
(6) Tell me how old Sarunna was when she moved to America?
(Answer) Six years old.
(Follow Up) Tell me how old you are and when your birthday is.
(7) Name some of the places Sarunna stopped on her way to America.
(Answer) Beijing, Japan, San Francisco, and New York.
(Follow Up) Have you ever been to any of these places before?
(8) Tell me what happened to make Sarunna feel better.
(Answer) She met a new friend.
(Follow Up) Does playing with your friends make you happy?
(9) Name some of the things Sarunna & Ali did together at school.
(Answer) Played on the swings & slide, built blocks, and painted pictures.
(Follow Up) Share with me some fun things you do at school.
(10) Recall the grade Sarunna was in when she could speak perfect English.
(Answer) Third grade.
(Follow Up) Can you speak a foreign language?
Activities
1. Pretend you are Sarunna. Write a letter to Ali telling her goodbye and how much you will miss her.
2. Imagine you are flying to a foreign country. Draw a picture of the airplane that would take you there.
3. Draw a picture of your best friend and you. Make sure to write their name below the picture.
4. Write a story about a time you have moved or gone on a vacation.
Introduction
1. Ask the children to recall their first day of school or their first day at a new school. Ask them how they felt. Say, “Today we’re going to read about a little girl who goes to a new school.”
2. Bring in a globe or a flat world map. Ask the child to point out where we are and then point to China. Ask them what they think it would be like to move from China to America. Say, “Let’s read about a little girl who moves to America from China.”
3. Bring in pictures that would represent China. Discuss the pictures. Say, “Today we’re going to read about a little girl from China.”
Book Title: My First American Friend
Author: Sarunna Jin
/ Illustrator: Shirley V. BeckesISBN: 0-8172-2785-7 / # of Text Pages: 11 AR: 3.5 LEX: 650
Building Oral Vocabulary
4 / grandparents / 6 / traveled / 13 / playtime
Prediction Questions
4 / How do you think she will get to America?
10 / What do you think will happen to make her feel better?
18 / Do you think she will make a new best friend?
This resource is provided by KYREADS—Barren County Board of Education, an AmeriCorps project funded in part by the Kentucky Commission on Community Volunteerism and Service and the Corporation for National and Community Service.
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