Hunger+Games+Carly+Lauren+Melissa+Patrick

=//The Hunger Games:// The Game of Ultimate Survival=



=‍//It is the future...//=

====Everything about the world as we know it has changed. Present-day countries and governments have collapsed after the fallout, replaced by one government to rule them all, Panem. Hunger reigns everywhere. Food is scarce. The government is ruthless and controls the food and economic supplies, forcing its citizens into submission and obedience. All are indebted to the government, working for and then having to buy supplies and food back from them. Few people dare to go beyond the borders of their districts to hunt for meat and scavenge for edible plants. While this is a very dangerous action, punishable by death, many of the high provincial figures (the Peacekeepers) purchase these precious commodities from these “hunters”. The world seems grim.====

====Katniss Evergreen, 16, volunteers to take the place of her 12-year-old sister as a tribute in the Games. This is unheard of in the poorest of the districts, District 12. Katniss must survive in order to return to her family, who rely on her for survival. Katniss is one of the few illegal hunters, and her skills could help her get ahead in the games.====

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==== Author Suzanne Collins lives in Connecticut with her family, but she has recently gained Hollywood worthy attention. Collins has been involved in the children and young adult entertainment business since 1991. She worked as a writer for multiple Nickelodeon shows, including //Clarissa Explains it All,The Mystery Files of Shelby Woo,//and //Little Bear//. She was encouraged to try writing a children’s book when she met author James Promois while working on the Kids WB show //Generation O!//. Collins eventually transitioned to writing books; she wrote the five book series, //The Underland Chronicles//, the first of which is titled, //Gregor the Overlander//. The series was inspired by the story Alice in Wonderland; Collins thought about what would happen if a child fell down a manhole, rather than a rabbit hole, and what they might discover in place of the tea party Alice comes across. //The Underland Chronicles// have recieved multiple honors, including being on the New York Times Bestsellers list and the 2004 NAIBA Children’s Novel Award. Following the success of The Underland Chronicles, Collins began her widely popular //Hunger Games// series consisting of three books, //The Hunger Games, Catching Fire,// and //Mockingjay//. The books were published in 2008,2009,and 2010 and have received numerous honors. It has been labeled a [|New York Times best selling series], each has been a USA Today #1 best seller, and the books have been on the Barnes & Noble Best Teen Books lists multiple times. Collins is currently participating in the process of making films based on her //Hunger Games// series. To learn more about the author and more about the Hunger Games series please visit the Hunger Games [|homepage]. ====

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====// The Hunger Games // could easily fit into a comparative unit that revolves around the themes of government, survival, or social structure. //The Hunger Games// could be combined with George Orwell’s [|//1984//] or William Golding's //[|Lord of the Flies].// ==== ==== The following ideas could be used in a comparative unit with another book, or in a unit covering just //The Hunger Games//. [|Scholastic]also provides some interesting classroom activities. ====

Teaching Ideas:
==== //Character Journal:// The students could choose a character to reflect upon by maintaining a character journal. The journal would involve the students choosing a character and using that character's voice to write narrative journal entries at various points through the unit. This journal would require the student think and act like the character. In result they would be able to experience the events of the book(s) in a personal way. ====

==== //Comparison of Governments:// They could look at the book(s) and compare what tactics the governments used in order to control their citizens. After comparing and delving into these tactics they can take what they learned and compare these governments choices to realistic totalitarian governments like those of Russia under Stalin and Germany under Hitler. The students can also compare how the treatment of civilians is different then the people that work for the government. For example, both federal employees and the peacemakers are more likely to get governmental benefits compared to normal citizens. They can use what they find in these texts and compare how this treatment is evident in our culture to this day. ====

==== //Investigation of social structure://They could study the social structure that exists in the book(s) and they can compare these social structures to ones that exist in modern life. They can analyze how they themselves would react if they were from the different groups/classes represented in the book(s). ====

==== //Mock Rebellion project:// Later in //The Hunger Games// series Katniss and her people end up rebelling. In 1984, Winston attempts to rebel against Big Brother. In Lord of the Flies, unrest comes about between Ralph and Jack's groups of boys.The students could devise their own rebellion and analyze what may work and what may not work. This would again, get the students thinking from the character's perspectives and give them a chance to work through their possible frustrations with the character's rebellions. ====

//Interview activity:// Students could create skits to perform in class, the skits could be their own re-enactment or interpretation of the Tribute's interviews before the Hunger Games. =‍=

=**Coming soon... Stay tuned!**= The [|Hunger Games] is coming to theaters! The film is directed by Gary Ross and will be released on March 23, 2012. Katniss Everdeen will be played by by Jennifer Lawrence, Peeta will be played by Josh Hutcherson, and Gale will be played by Liam Hemsworth. media type="youtube" key="RNxb28j5C1w" height="315" width="560"

=Some Insight on the Characters= The following videos focus on some of the characters from the Movie. [|Peeta] is played by Josh Hutcherson and [|Gale]is played by Liam Hemsworth. [|Katniss]will be played by Jennifer Lawrence. In the following interviews the actors go in depth on the characters that they are playing. media type="youtube" key="5THdICS7QE0" height="315" width="560"

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=Promotional On Other Works by Suzanne Collins=

Checkout this video about Collins' young reader series- //[|The Underland Chronicles]//
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** Images **
 * [|Book Cover]
 * [|Author]
 * [|Teaching Picture]


 * Resources:**
 * [|Official 2012 Hunger Games Movie Trailer - YouTube]
 * [|Interview with Suzanne Collins About the Trilogy - YouTube]
 * [|Promotional Video for Collins’ Underland Chronicles Series - YouTube]
 * [|Character Interview on Peeta & Gale - YouTube]
 * [|Character Interview on Katniss - YouTube]
 * [|Additional Biographical Information]: More biographical information about the author, Suzanne Collins
 * [|Suzanne Collins' Official Website]: The official website of Suzanne Collins
 * [|Scholastic Hunger Games Resource]: A teaching page that offers different Hunger Games lesson ideas
 * Hunger Games controversy - Stay up to date on how parents view the book. This CNN news article tells why The Hunger Games series are #3 on the American Library Association's Top 10 most frequently challenged books list.
 * Wikipedia - Fastest way to find out everything you want to know about The Hunger Games
 * Book Review - Good overview of The Hunger Games at Childrensbooks.com
 * Example of different kinds of dystopic literatures - Word Doc

--//Laura Brower, Patrick Brown, Carly Seyferth, Melissa VanZee//.