TUMBLEWEED STEW TEACHER TIPS

1.  Readers' Theater
Have students perform Tumbleweed Stew.  Download a script here.
 
2.  Compare and Contrast
Read different versions of Stone Soup.  Have students compare and contrast the two stories, Stone Soup and Tumbleweed Stew, with regard to plot, characters, setting.  Where does the author live?  Does this have anything to do with the choice of the setting and characters?

3.  Texas Flora and Fauna
Have students list the Texas animals found in Tumbleweed Stew and do research to find more information and real photos of each them.  Find out the names of the plants pictured in the book and why they grow well in Texas.

4.  Vegetable Study
Bring in vegetables depicted in the book.  Let students hold them.  Which do we usually eat raw?  Which are better cooked?  Which grow under the ground?  Above ground?  Refer to Tops and Bottoms by Janet Stevens for a fun vegetable tale.

"Susan's love for children allows her to touch the lives of over 100,000 children each year in ways the rest of us can only envy."
 Dr. Susan Lair, Head of School, St. Francis Episcopal Day School