Transcript The Castle In The Attic

The Castle In The Attic
By: Elizabeth Winthrop
Elizabeth Winthrop
Elizabeth Winthrop grew up in Washington DC. She
was the only girl in her family; she had five brothers. Her
great-great uncle was Theodore Roosevelt, and her dad
was Stewart Alsop, a well-known political journalist.
Her father worked at home and one of her earliest
memories is the pop-pop of typewriter keys hitting the
round rubber carriage of his old typewriter. Because of
this, she grew up believing that writing was an
honorable profession and that you could actually make a
living at it.
Elizabeth went to Sarah Lawrence College. She later
worked as an editor in the children's department of a
major publishing house. She has written over forty
books for kids including “As The Crow Flies”, “Asleep In a
Heap”, and “Battle For the Castle”. Many of her books
come from experiences she had before age 12.
Elizabeth currently lives in NY City.
The Castle In the
Attic
Ten year old William can't wait to play
with the mysterious castle his house keeper
Mrs. Phillips, has given him. For years she
has been telling him about the old stone and
wood model with its drawbridge, moat and
the finger-high knight to guard the gates.
And now it is his.
But when William learns that Mrs. Phillips is
going back to England to live with her
brother, he vows to find a way to keep Mrs.
Phillips with him forever. And when he
breaks the spell cast on the tiny silver
knight, he suddenly knows how to do it.
But William's big idea turns out to be the
worst mistake of his life!
This is an exciting story of magic and
fantasy, which weaves the everyday
problems of growing up into the age-old
battle between good and evil. William's
quest takes him on a journey to a land
where he must fight a ferocious dragon, a
wicked wizard and worst of all, the darkness
within himself.
Before:
1. Look carefully at the cover. Write down any information the cover gives
you about the story.
2. Find the drawing of the castle at the beginning of the book and study it.
Notice all the names of the rooms and parts. Write down any words
that are new to you.
During:
1. Be on the lookout for facts about Mrs. Phillips and William.
telling all you found
2. List any words new to you on Post its.
After:
1. Write a paragraph telling all you found out about Mrs. Phillips. Include
as many facts as you can.
2. Write a paragraph telling everything you found out about William.
include as many facts as you can.
3. What is William’s problem in chapter 1? How does he try to solve it?
4. What do you think the surprise is that Mrs. Phillips has for William?