The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
“Play List” (CD Insert)
It’s only fitting, considering Tom’s love of “play”,
not “work”!
Quick Time™a nd a
TIFF ( Unco mpre ssed ) dec ompr esso r
ar e nee ded to see this pictur e.
QuickTime™ and a
TIFF (U ncompressed) decompressor
are needed to see t his picture.
Begin a Band.
QuickTi me™ and a
T IFF (Uncom pressed) decom pressor
are needed to see t his pict ure.
QuickTime™ and a
TIFF (U ncompressed) decompressor
are needed to see t his picture.
Write some songs.
a CD.
Quic kT i me™ and a
T IFF (Unc ompres s ed) dec ompres s or
are needed t o s ee thi s pi c ture.
QuickTi me™ and a
T IFF (Uncom pressed) decom pressor
are needed to see t his pict ure.
Create an album.
Design
Be a creative, thoughtful, and coherent writer.
Overview
You are going to compile various songs and song descriptions into a “Tom Sawyer Album”.
You will receive a CD case to display your work.
Song Names and Answers
Your song descriptions are based on a series of specific questions (below).
The Computer Nitty-Gritty
You will be adding songs to ONE document. Do not lose your work!
Save to the server; put it in my drop box to save it there; print your work out frequently. There will be few
exceptions made for “lost work”.
Song Lyrics
On one page of your CD insert, you will write a song (a poem) based on one of the questions. It should be
at least 15 lines.
Cover Design
Be creative! Display artwork or images – depicting scenes from the book, for example. Include your
1) band name, 2) album name, and 3) your name.
Band Songs and Rationales
Pick two songs that actually exist. Include your reason for picking the song. For example, does it have to
do with a particular adventure of Tom? Does it relate to a theme in the novel somehow?
Of course, make sure the song is appropriate.
Final Product Rubric
CD Components
Points
Unique and Creative Cover Design and Band Name
10 Song Titles and Paragraphs (answering the questions)
2 Band Songs and Reasons for Choosing those Songs
Song Lyrics (Poem)
Spelling, Grammar, and Punctuation
5
50
5
10
15
(Every rule on the classroom writing rubric is fair game: commas,
quotation marks, being specific, etc.!)
Typed, neat, colorful
Extra Credit
5
Up to 10 extra points
(Go beyond: “Special Thanks To:” section, additional songs, lyric lines beyond the
minimum, extra inside images or artwork, back cover design, a song on Garage Band
or on Sound Studio, etc.)
TOTAL: 90
Your “Play List”
CHOOSE and answer TEN questions from below. Create a song name for each.
“Mr. Twelve Feet Deep”
1. Give a brief history of Samuel Clemens. Some of your facts may come from the following websites:
http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/railton/index2.html, http://www.pbs.org/marktwain,
http://www.cmgworldwide.com/historic/twain/. Feel free, of course, to find other books or websites for
information! What happened in this man’s life? What are his most famous works?
“The Model Boy Blues”
2. What does this famous quote mean? “He was not the Model Boy of the village. He knew the model
boy very well though – and loathed him.” Be specific, with examples from the text.
“Trickin’ the Town Boys”
3. Think about how Tom gets other people to whitewash the fence for him. Describe an instance where
you or someone you know performed this same type of trickery.
4. What is the different between work and play? Reread Mark Twain’s explanation in Chapter 2 (it’s near
the end). Then explain this in your own words and give an example.
5. What is your favorite scene (or chapter) in the book? Is there any one scene that you could really
visualize? Relate to? One that you laughed at? Or will remember forever? Describe the scene and why it
was your favorite.
6. From what point of view is The Adventures of Tom Sawyer written? And what effect does that have
on the story? Be specific!
7. Describe the setting. Include the name of the town, the river, the decade. What did the boys do in the
river? What type of town was it – sleepy, isolated, bustling, big, small, close to nature, uncomplicated,
relaxed, busy? What? Then, give at least two names and descriptions of other places mentioned in the
book.
8.The Adventures of Tom Sawyer was written well over a hundred years ago. Why do people
still read it? What makes this book a "classic" that is still read – while thousands of other books
have long been out of print? People say that classics withstand the test of time – meaning, they people
from one generation to the next can relate to the book, enjoy the book, etc. Give your opinion.
9. How does Tom mature? In many situations, Tom starts out very childish and irresponsible – but ends
up acting more mature and responsible. Think of Tom and Becky’s relationship, the Jackson Island story,
the story of Injun Joe. Perhaps you’ll want to include the quote from the book’s conclusion: “So endeth this
chronicle. It being strictly a history of a boy, it must stop here; the story could not go much further without
becoming the history of a man.” Doesn’t this imply (show us) that Tom’s almost a man? Indeed!
10. Suppose you could spend a half-hour with Tom Sawyer. What would you talk about? Why?
11. Suppose you could spend time with one character from the book (other than Tom). What would you
ask him/her? What would you discuss, and why?
12. Is the story of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer believable? Explain why or why not. Be specific!
13. Compare and contrast Huck and Tom.
14. Choose any character in the book except Huck. Write a letter to Huck, in which you persuade him to
stay with the Widow Douglas and become “civilized”. Use any arguments you wish, except the one Tom
used (that he wouldn’t let Huck in his gang if he didn’t become civilized).
15. Chapter 23 – Muff Potter’s Salvation
In this paragraph, give at least three quotes (three clues) from Chapter 23 that show us that Tom is going
to tell the court that Injun Joe committed the murder instead of Muff Potter. Think about when Tom came
in at night; think about Tom talking to Huck; think about how Potter’s lawyer doesn’t question any of the
defense’s witnesses; think about how Twain presents this chapter – talking lots about Tom and not about
the rest of the court’s details. There is lots of foreshadowing here! Use the class document we used to
make predictions.
16. Would you have liked to been a part of the The Adventures of Tom Sawyer world? Why or why not?
Explain.
17. What kinds of things does Tom do which are primarily associated with boyhood? Perhaps you’ll
describe his tricks, his boyhood games, his superstitions, etc. Be specific.
18. Was Aunt Polly a good parent? What makes a good parent? Be specific, with examples from the text.
19. Injun Joe is purely rotten, through and through. What does this character add to the story?
20. What events occur at midnight? Why does Twain have them occur at this time? List at least two!
21. What is a superstition? Tom uses superstitions to explain a lot, doesn’t he? Remember how he
thinks he’s going to die when the dog howls at him? But then knows he won’t because the dog stops
facing him? And what about the one with the dead cat and curing warts? Do you believe in any
superstitions? If so, what?
22. Compare and contrast Huck and Becky. That means, give similarities and differences between the
two characters.
23. At the end of Chapter 17, Twain is a bit ironic. He criticizes the hypocrisy of adult society: adults only
seem to notice the worth of people once they have passed away. For example, while alive, most of
the adults in St. Petersburg fail to recognize the worth of Tom, Huck, and Joe. When they are thought to
be dead, however, they react much differently. Comment on this irony. Do you think this is true? Do you
have any specific, personal examples? Could we learn a lesson from this, and, if so, what?
24. Have you ever pulled a prank similar to Tom?
25. There are lots of new vocabulary words in this book! Pick five words from the following list and
define them. Then, put these words in a contextually-clear sentence.
26. What do you think about the ending of the book? Did you like it? Explain why or why not, giving
specific reasons. For example, if you hated it, give a scene/plot turn/chapter that you would have written
differently.
27. How does your experience in Hannibal, MO compare to the book? Give a recap narrative of your
time in this city and discuss how each thing you did related to the classic!
28. Aunt Polly knew a home remedy for nearly every ailment. Like most Americans in the early to mid
1800s, she probably needed to rely on her own medical expertise to heal common symptoms. In Aunt
Polly’s times, a town was fortunate to have a doctor – though the doctor may not have been much more
knowledgeable about medicine than his patients. After the Civil War, there were many advances in
medicine, but prior to then, medical knowledge was very limited. While many home remedies worked,
some of them not only failed to cure anything, but actually caused symptoms to worsen. Research two
home remedies from this time period. You might be able to find some on
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/learn/features/timeline/riseind/rural/remedies.html.
29. Would you want to visit your own funeral like the boys did? So that you could hear the eulogy (the
nice speech about you)? If yes, What would you want to hear said about you? What would you expect to
be said? If no, why not?
30. Tom says, “…to promise not to do a thing is the surest way in the world to make the body want
to go and do that very thing.” He is talking about how he was supposed to not drink and swear – but
saying that he wouldn’t made him want to drink and swear even more! Has this ever happened to you?
For example, have you made a New Year’s Resolution – like not eat as many sweets - and then right after
making the resolution, you were tempted by sweets so much more? Explain and comment on this idea!
31. What were some of the differences between the play and the novel? Be specific. What was your
opinion of the play?
32. If you’d like to write about a different aspect of this book, see me! I’ll let you know if your topic is okay.
POEM IDEAS
(You can write any type of poem, but here are some suggestions!)
1. Prank Poem
Every new line could refer to a different aspect of Tom’s mischievous adventures.
2. Scene Poem
Every new line could refer to the different scenes you will always remember from the novel.
3. Crime Poem
Give details and a sequence of the murder scene.
4. Setting Poem
What’s St. Petersburg like? What about the different settings in the novel? You could even devote the
whole poem to just McDougal’s cave, for example.
5. Characteristic Poem
Every new line could refer to Tom’s personality traits.
6. Acrostic Poem
Each new line could start with the letter from the title “ADVENTURES OF TOM SAWYER” or even “TOM
SAWYER AND HUCKLEBERRY FINN”.
7. Character Poem
Mention characters in each new line – from Aunt Polly to Mr. Dobbins to Huck to Muff Potter to the Model
Boy to Sid to Becky to Amy Lawrence to the Widow Douglas to the Welshman, etc.!
8. A “Classic” Poem
Why is this novel a “classic”? This poem could be about YOU and why you might remember this book in
the future – or why you enjoyed (or didn’t enjoy) reading it this month!
9. Onomatopoeia Poem
What are the sounds of Tom Sawyer’s world? Each new line could be a new sound!