1. Select several titles in which a grandparent is a major character. Have students read them and compare characterizations. Each student might read two books and compare; another alternative would be for each student to read a single title and then discuss with others in a literature circle format.

2. Have students read several titles in which a grandparent passes along wisdom or knowledge. Ask students to keep track of the things the grandparent teaches. These ideas could then be sorted by type. Students might also want to write about/ discuss the role of elders in maintaining family history or cultural identity or in sharing wisdom gained through life experiences.

3. Ask students to read one or more books from this list and then to compare the family relationships depicted in the books with their own.

4. Have students read several of the titles that feature memoirs. Use these as the beginning of an oral history project, in which students interview elders and report on/ write about what they learned.

Grandparents Matrix