Big Question Overview and Resources

Overview

How do you know who your friends are? Sometimes it’s hard to know. Hopefully, your friends are people that you trust and enjoy spending time with. Reading stories about friendship can help you decide what to expect from your friends and how to be a good friend in return.

A drama is a work of literature that is meant to be performed for an audience. A drama has characters, a setting, a theme, and a plot. You can see a drama performed, or you can read a drama. Many dramas are based on the theme of friendship. Reading dramas will help you answer the Unit 8 Big Question: What Makes a Friend?

Web Resources

On Friendship
http://kotn.ntu.ac.uk/allabout/friends/index.cfm
This website has stories and poems about friendship. All of the work is written by kids. You can respond to the writing online or add your own.

The Symphony of Friendship
www.mandala.co.jp/B9/P00E.html
The Japanese have a custom of playing Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony at Christmas. Read why this tradition began and look at the pictures drawn by Japanese students.

Friendship Stories
http://raspberry.forest.net/FMPro?-DB=whootie.fp5&-Format=/whootie/results.htm&-OP=cn&key%20words=friendship&-Find
Read fairytales and folktales about friendship from France, Uganda, China, Iran, Norway, Greece, and other places around the world.

When Friends Fight
http://pbskids.org/itsmylife/friends/friendsfight/index.html
Sometimes you and your friend may disagree. You might have a fight and say things you don’t really mean. This website offers suggestions for dealing with these disagreements. You can click on topics such as, “Talk About It,” “The Importance of I’m Sorry,” “Group Fights,” and “Make Up and Move On.”

The Art and Science of Theater
http://library.thinkquest.org/21722/
Learn the history of theater and the process of putting together a successful play. Topics on this site include stage lighting, stage direction, theatrical history, literature, and even some health benefits of drama.