Inside Out and Back Again

Thanhha Lai
HarperCollins Publishers, 2011
Grade Level: 5th Grade
Lexile: 800L
Fountas & Pinnell: Q
Suggested Delivery: independent reading
Newbery Honor Book, 2011 National Book Award Winner, Boston Globe Horn Book Award Honor Book, 2012 Notable Books for a Global Society Award Winner

Summary: For all the ten years of her life, Ha has only known Saigon: the thrills of its markets, the joy of its traditions, the warmth of her friends close by, and the beauty of her very own papaya tree. But now the Vietnam War has reached her home. Ha and her family are forced to flee as Saigon falls, and they board a ship headed toward hope.

This is the moving story of one girl's year of change, dreams, grief, and healing as she journeys from one country to another, one life to the next.

Teaching strategies:

Key Vocabulary:
Lotus
Glutinous
Altar
Chant
Communist
Diacritical
Illogical
Solitude
Superstitious


Before Teaching Activity: Ask the students what they know about the Vietnam War. What have they heard from their parents or grandparent? do they have any thoughts or opinions they wish to share? What questions do you have about the Vietnam War? After discussing, show the students pictures from that era and give them background knowledge of this time.

During Teaching Activity: have the students compare and contrast Hà’s  home in Vietnam and her new home in Alabama using a Venn Diagram. 

After Teaching Activity: Have the students list some of the challenges that Hà and her family experience, not only in America but in Vietnam as well. Have the students how she overcomes these challenges and how these strategies change throughout the book. Have the students discuss their answers in a think-pair-share activity. 

Writing Activity:  Explain how Hà adapts to her surroundings over the course of the book. At what point do things begin to get better for her? Describe the specific episodes that lead to positive changes in her life.

Since this is a novel written in verse, have the students visit this website in order to experience writing poetry of their own!

have students explore the immigration experience in order to see what Hà and her family went through!