Wendy Tamborrino, Grade 5, Binford Elementary School
Ruby’s Wish
By
Shirin
Yim
Bridges
Illustrated by Sophie Blackall
Global Literacy
Invitation
prepared by
Wendy
T
ambor
ri
no
Monroe
Country
Community
School
Corporation
Bloomington, Indiana
Wendy Tamborrino, Grade 5, Binford Elementary School
Book Summary:
Ruby’s Wish is based on a true story of the author’s grandmother, a little girl growing up in old China living in a big
traditional house headed by her wealthy, forward thinking grandfather and filled with his many wives, children and
grandchildren. But there is something special here... unlike most Chinese households during this time period, the
girls are allowed to study with the boys. Of course, they must keep up with all their other training, too, like
housekeeping and embroidery after their academic lessons while the boys get to run off and play. But, Ruby loves
learning so much she keeps at it even when all the other girls drop out. Unlike the Chinese expectations of Chinese
women, Ruby wishes to have the same rights as all the males in her family, including going to the university. What
she wants most of all is to go to university rather than be married off. She receives the greatest surprise on the
Chinese New Year when she opens up her red envelope and receives an acceptance letter from a university saying
that Ruby would be one of the first women ever to attend the school.
Ruby’s Wish is an inspiring book that teaches children to persevere, stand up for what they believe in, and
expresses the importance of a good education for everyone.
Learning Invitations:
Where in the World is China?
Chinese New Year: Scrolls of Knowledge
Chinese Lantern Festival
Let’s Learn Chinese Calligraphy
Making a Change: A Wish for the World
Up Close and Personal Commercial with “Famous Firsts- Women in History”
Social Studies THEMES
English/Language Arts Standards
Global Connections
Culture
Geography
5.RN.3.1 Apply knowledge of text features in multiple print
and digital sources to locate information, gain meaning from a
text, or solve a problem.
5.RN.4.2 Combine information from several texts or digital
sources on the same topic in order to demonstrate knowledge
about the subject.
5.W.5 Conduct short research assignments and tasks on a
topic.
5.W.4 Generate a draft by developing, selecting and
organizing ideas relevant to topic, purpose, and genre; revise
to improve writing, using appropriate reference materials (e.g.,
quality of ideas, organization, sentence fluency, word choice);
and edit writing for format and standard English conventions.
5.SL.4.2 Create engaging presentations that include
multimedia components and visual displays when appropriate
to enhance the development of main ideas or themes.
Scan to
listen to
Ruby’s
Wish
Ruby’s Wish
by Shirin Yim Bridges
Illustrated by Sopie Blackall
Wendy Tamborrino, Grade 5, Binford Elementary School
Where in the World is China?
1.
Find China on a globe/world map and then find the United States.
2.
Color and label China and the United States of America on the blank
world map.
3.
Both countries have very distinctive shapes. Make a drawing of each
one.
4.
Using a map mileage legend, estimate how far away China is from the United States.
5.
Identify the oceans and continents that lie between your school and Ruby’s home.
6.
China is located in the and hemispheres.
7.
The United States is located in the and
hemispheres.
8.
If Ruby works on her embroidery at night around 9:00 pm, what time is it where you live?
9.
Color the flag of China.
United States
China
Wendy Tamborrino, Grade 5, Binford Elementary School
Wendy Tamborrino, Grade 5, Binford Elementary School
C
h
i
ne
s
e
Ne
w
Y
ear
S
cro
ll
s
o
f
K
no
w
l
e
dg
e
The Chinese New Year is one of the most important traditions in my Chinese culture. I
would like to share with you the traditions and legends that make Chinese New Year the
most exciting time of the year. Start your learning adventure by choosing at least 2 of
the videos below. Watch the videos then record 4-5 interesting facts you learned on the
Scrolls of Knowledge. Make sure you write your fact on the scroll that matches the
video title. Write your name after each written fact.
Wendy Tamborrino, Grade 5, Binford Elementary School
The Story of Chinese New Year
Wendy Tamborrino, Grade 5, Binford Elementary School
Bet You Didn’t Know: Chinese New Year History Channel
Wendy Tamborrino, Grade 5, Binford Elementary School
The Story of Nian- a Chinese New Year Story
Wendy Tamborrino, Grade 5, Binford Elementary School
E
xplorin
g
C
h
i
n
e
se
C
ult
ur
e:
L
an
te
r
n
F
e
sti
v
a
l
Wendy Tamborrino, Grade 5, Binford Elementary School
C
h
i
ne
s
e
L
an
ter
n
F
e
s
tiv
a
l
The Chinese Lantern Festival is an exciting celebration that happens on the 15th day of the 1st lunar
month. It marks the end of the Chinese New Year festivities with the first full moon of the year. This
night is brightly lit with thousands of lanterns that line the streets and are hung from our homes and
storefronts. We enjoy seeing a parade with floats, watching the Chinese Lion and Dragon Dances,
listening to music and drums, and admiring the beautiful firecrackers.
Here is a picture of me and my friends carrying our
lanterns around the village. Afterwards, our families
come together to eat sweet rice balls for good
fortune and family unity.
Our traditional lanterns are made from silk, paper
and even glass. The shapes include boxes, lotus
flowers, dragons, butterflies, and all sorts of animals.
The color of the lanterns communicates different
things. For example, the most common lanterns are red which symbolize joy and vitality. A white
lantern should never be used unless there has been a death in the family.
Make your own paper lantern by following these instructions.
1.
Start with rectangular sheet of
paper. Cut a strip of paper
from the long edge of the
paper (about 1" width). This
will be used as the handle of
the lantern.
2.
Fold the paper in half
lengthwise. Cut strips
crosswise: cut from the folded
edge towards the raw edge.
Be careful to keep the strips
connected and do not cut
each strip off.
3.
Unfold the paper.
4.
Loop the paper around to form
a tube. Join the short ends of
the paper together with tape or
staples.
Wendy Tamborrino, Grade 5, Binford Elementary School
The Lantern Festival is
celebrated the fifteenth day of
the
first
month in the Chinese
lunar calendar. This would be
during the months of February or
March. The Lantern Festival
marks the end of the Lunar New
Year celebrations.
Many people burn incense in
temples and their homes to pray
for blessings on their families. In
ancient times, the Chinese
believed the spirits could be seen
on the night of the festival with
the aid of torches. Later lanterns
were substituted for the torches.
Lantern shows attract large
crowds at some Buddhist and
Taoist temples.
According to ancient beliefs,
people born in different years
possess certain characteristics.
1.
Find out what animal
represents the year you
were born.
2.
Look at the characteristics
that will
be
listed for that
year.
Do
you
fit
any of
those characteristics?
3.
Design a lantern to
represent your zodiac sign
4.
Design the other two
lanterns the way you think
they would look in the
Lantern Festival.
Wendy Tamborrino, Grade 5, Binford Elementary School
Wendy Tamborrino, Grade 5, Binford Elementary School
Le
t’s
Le
ar
n
C
h
i
n
e
s
e
C
a
ll
i
gra
p
h
y
I’m a very lucky girl. Where I grew up, not all girls had the chance to learn to read and write, but my
grandfather provided us with the opportunity to learn. This was not a very common practice. I always
enjoyed practicing my handwriting or calligraphy. I liked writing neatly and doing my best because I
love and respect learning. You may be wondering what calligraphy is. Calligraphy is an art form. In
ancient China, calligraphy is a means of communication, a way to write things down. It is also a way
to express yourself. All noble and royal children had to learn calligraphy. Even emperors practiced
until they were good at writing calligraphy. Of course emperors could appoint someone to write for
them, but the ability to write in calligraphy showed control and inner peace. It was a sign of status.
The emperor had the highest status of all.
Would you like to learn how to write calligraphy? Here is a helpful tutorial for beginners.
C
h
i
n
e
se
C
all
i
grap
h
y
Tutorial
https://safeshare.tv/x/ss587be7723273d
Wendy Tamborrino, Grade 5, Binford Elementary School
The Chinese Alphabet
A
LL
26
LETTERS OF THE ALPHABET
In the Chinese alphabet, small letters
are written like capital letters, and vice
versa.
Can you write the Chinese alphabet?
Try it out. Get a blank piece of paper
and a pen or brush and ink. I wonder
what your name looks like written in
Chinese characters? Use the Chinese
alphabet chart to help you write your
name.
http://www.chinese-tools.com/characters/alphabet.html
A
诶
ēi
B
比
bǐ
C
西
xī
D
迪
dí
E
伊
yī
F
艾弗
ài fú
G
吉
jí
H
艾尺
ài chǐ
I
艾
ài
J
杰
jié
K
开
kāi
L
艾勒
ài lè
M
艾马
ài mǎ
N
艾娜
ài nà
O
哦
ó
P
屁
pì
Q
吉吾
jí wú
R
艾儿
ài ér
S
艾丝
ài sī
T
提
tí
U
伊吾
yī wú
V
维
wéi
W
豆贝尔
维
dòu bèi ěr wéi
X
艾克斯
yī kè sī
Y
吾艾
wú ài
Z
贼德
zéi dé
Wendy Tamborrino, Grade 5, Binford Elementary School
Maki
n
g
a
C
h
an
ge
-
A
W
i
sh
f
or
t
h
e
World
“Alas, bad luck to be born a girl; worse luck to be
born into this house where only boys are cared for.”
This is a poem that
I
wrote for my teacher.
Little
did
I
know
that when
I
wrote this poem,
it
would result in the beginning of a large and
important change in my
family
and
in
my own
life. I
achieved my wish largely
because
I
wrote the poem. Using our words is the best starting place for making
change happen.
We
all
have wishes
for
ourselves. What are your wishes?
I
challenge you to stand
up
for
what you believe in and
write
a poem about something in your
life
or in the
world that YOU would
like
to change.
I
promise you
that
you’ll feel so good about
writing
your thoughts down on paper. That’s how
I felt
and look how my words
helped me! Your words matter and so do YOU!
I’m sure you have written and read many
poems
before
so choose
a poetic form
that you like.
If
you can’t
decide,
why not try writing a haiku
poem?
It’s simple to
do. Here
are the
basic
rules:
Haiku is an unrhymed three-lined verse form
with
5 syllables
in
the
first
line, 7
in the second, and 5 in the third. Begin your haiku
with
the
title,
“A Wish for the
World”. Go ahead, give
it
a try.
A Wish for the World
by _______________________
5 syllables
7 syllables
5 syllables
Wendy Tamborrino, Grade 5, Binford Elementary School
Up Close and Personal Commercial with “Famous Firsts- Women in
History”
“But the girls had to learn about cooking and keeping house. In
fact, as far as their mothers were concerned, these were the only
things girls had to learn.”
The author, Shirin Yi Bridges, shares with the reader how the roles of boys and girls in old China
were clearly defined. Girls were prepared for marriage and tending to the home while boys attended
to their studies. However, Ruby challenged these traditional
gender roles by respectfully communicating to her grandfather
her desire to go to the university rather than getting married.
She was one of the very first females to attend the
university.
It takes perseverance and courage to speak up for what
you believe in especially when society’s expectations are
the opposite of what you believe.
1.
Work with a partner to discuss how our society’s
expectations of girls have changed (or not changed)
over time in our country. What rights do women have in
our country today that they didn’t have in the past?
2.
What “famous firsts” have women achieved in US history
or in the world?
3.
Imagine you have been hired by The History Channel to create a one minute commercial
promoting a famous woman in history who had the courage to be the first woman “pioneer” to
fight for their rights, to work hard so they could be treated equally, and made great strides in
fields like science, politics, sports, literature and art.
4.
Using the information you’ve researched, create a one minute commercial called, “Up Close
and Personal with (insert name of famous first)”.
5. Before beginning your research, be sure you have a quality research question (one that
doesn’t have a yes or no answer or a one word answer). Questions that begin with “why” or
“how” invite deep research and thinking. For example,
Why should we honor and recognize as a “famous first female pioneer”?
6.
A good starting point for your research might be
http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/women/notable.htm. This site will provide an A-Z
overview of up to 30 names and brief bios of notable women in history. Use what you know
about researching online to find other biographies about famous women who were first to
pioneer change. Once you select a famous woman in history, complete the Honoring and
Recognizing a “Famous First” Female Pioneer graphic organizer.
7.
Use your iPad and non-electronic resources to gather your information.
8. Write your commercial script making sure your information is thorough and answers the who,
what, where, when, why, and how about your famous woman.
9. Record your commercial using iMovie, green screen technology, PowerPoint, or any form of
digital recording.
Wendy Tamborrino, Grade 5, Binford Elementary School
Ho
n
ori
n
g
a
n
d
re
cog
n
i
z
i
n
g
a
“fam
ou
s
f
i
rs
t
”
f
e
m
ale
pio
n
ee
r
Y
ou
r
N
a
m
e:
__________________________________________________
Date
:
_____________________
Who?
____________
____________
E
d
u
ca
t
i
on
:
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
B
o
r
n
:
__________
Died:___________
Ma
i
n
C
ont
r
i
b
u
ti
ons
to
Soc
i
e
ty
(
W
ha
t
i
s
s
he
f
a
m
ou
s
f
or
?
Wh
y
shou
l
d
sh
e
be
ho
n
ored
a
n
d
ce
l
e
br
a
te
d
?
)
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
Fun Facts:
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
E
a
r
l
y
L
i
f
e:
(
F
a
m
i
l
y
l
i
f
e
,
c
hi
l
d
h
oo
d
)
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
E
a
r
l
y
C
a
r
ee
r
:
(
E
a
r
l
y
jo
bs
/s
u
cc
e
sse
s
)
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________