Adventure

Adventure stories are generally dominated by fast-paced action; they involve danger, risk, and excitement. The events that take place are more remarkable and extraordinary than they would be in everyday life. this genre is often most defined by a protagonist that takes on a heroic quest where they must prove their own worthiness or a dire consequence will occur. There is always an unlikeable antagonist, or villain, that is trying to stop the protagonist from completing their adventure task. In the best stories, the adventures have a transformational impact on the hero of the story, who is usually likeable and most commonly male. Even though the hero always wins, sometimes the villain can also change for the better. The setting is usually changeable in adventure books as the reader follows the protagonist through their journey; but it is typically one of the most important elements of the story since it underlies the sense of danger and the obstacles that must be overcome. There is always a resolution at the end of the quest. The adventure genre commonly overlaps with other genres as well.


When searching for books, I will look for stories that can teach lessons which connect to the standards. They should also be on topics that I know the students in my classroom are interested in. Adventure books are a good way to start talking about other content areas such as history. They help students travel places within the books and "see" places they might not otherwise ever see. Students will get to feel like they are part of the excitement and adventure and can learn important historical information.


Awards:
Beverly Hills Book Awards 
Newbery Medal and Honor Books 

Author or Text Resources:
Adventure Books for Kids 
Choose Your Own Adventure Books 

General Resources:
Cross-Genre Adventure Writing 
Adventure Fiction 

Quality Teaching Ideas:
Magic Tree House Teacher's Club 
Guide to Using Dav Pilkey's Books in the Classroom 

Some of my favorite book choices:

Magic Tree House: Dinosaurs Before Dark
By: Mary Pope Osborne

The Magic Tree House series has lots of different books on many different topics and they are high reader interest books. They are very helpful when teaching about history and culture, and they have excellent storytelling aspects. There is a website that includes many teaching resources, activities for students, and connections to the standards. The books are translated in several languages which can be great if you have a student in the classroom whose second language is English. 

Osborne, Mary Pope. (1992). Magic tree house: dinosaurs before dark. New York, New York: Random House.

Grade level span: K-1, Lexile Level: 240L, Grade Level: 2.6
Grade level span for class read aloud: 1-3
Major themes addressed: each book addresses a different theme; mainly historical contexts
Qualities of the writing: engaging for students, addictive series
Connections to local, national, or global issues: appreciating our past and different cultures
Facets that might require support: some of the books' content may require prior knowledge
Support that might be needed: if using as a class read aloud, give students some background information


Choose Your Own Adventure: Princess Island
By: Shannon Gilligan

Princess Dirt has the manners of a gentlelady but the kneecaps of a troll. Her mother sends her off to princess camp for some outdoor adventure and a bit of polishing up on her royal skills, but her heart is in the wilds of nature. YOU can decide to behave like a royal or embrace the dirt within you. These books allow children to have some control over the way the story ends and get to help write the story. They help show students how they can work on endings in their own stories to make them better, and can also teach organization. Students can re-read them for a different ending. These books might be fun to do as a class read-aloud and can allow students to take turns choosing which direction to go. 


Gilligan, Shannon. (2015). Choose your own adventure: Princess island. Waitsfield, Vermont: Chooseco LLC.
Grade level span:  n.a., Lexile Level: n.a., Grade Level: n.a.
Grade level span for class read aloud: K-2
Major themes addressed: embrace true self, royalty, expectations
Qualities of the writing: unique format
Connections to local, national, or global issues: expectations of your behavior within your community
Facets that might require support: Organization can be confusing
Support that might be needed: use as a class read aloud or model for the students how to use