Pages 5–6 Reread the spread that begins, “But being twins doesn’t make us exactly the same.” What are some ways Callie and Charlie are different? Possible responses: Callie is two minutes younger than Charlie. Callie can stare at the stars and the moon for hours. She loves to talk. Charlie looks for jets and helicopters in the sky and keeps quiet a lot. He is skinnier and goofier than Callie, and he doesn’t like math.
SPOTLIGHT ON LANGUAGE On page 8, read aloud the sentence, “Seems those words were locked deep inside my brother.” Explain that this sentence uses figurative language. Explain to campers that it doesn’t mean that words were actually locked inside Charlie’s body like gold locked inside a safe. Rather, it means that he couldn’t figure out how to say the words.
Page 9 Reread the paragraph that begins, “As we grew older, Mommy watched Charlie very carefully.” What did Callie and Charlie’s mother discover about why Charlie’s brain works in a special way? Possible responses: She learned that Charlie has autism. Page 14 Reread the page that begins, “When Charlie wants something, nothing stops him.” Why can it sometimes be hard to be Charlie’s sister? Possible responses: Sometimes Charlie does things that aren’t safe so Callie has to look after him. Sometimes his behavior makes it hard for her to play with other friends. Sometimes he seems far away and does not respond to or interact with her. Pages 17–18 Review the pages with the text that begins, “There are good times with Charlie, too.” What are some of the ways that Callie feels Charlie’s “I love you” without him actually saying the words? Possible responses: Callie feels Charlie’s “I love you” when he looks directly at her and smiles, when he lets her touch his face, and when he laughs when they play a holding-hands game. She feels his love during all the silly games they play together. Pages 20–29 Reread the text that begins, “Charlie is good at so much.” Continue through the two sentences: “Charlie has autism. But autism doesn’t have Charlie.” What do you think Callie means by “But autism doesn’t have Charlie”? Possible responses: Autism is a part of Charlie, but it doesn’t define who he is. Explore More If time allows, continue the discussion with these additional prompts. What did the doctor say some of Charlie’s challenges might be because of his autism? Based on what you’ve read, why might Charlie have a harder time making friends than Callie? Who else loves Callie and Charlie? How do you know?
Leader’s Guide • Lesson 8 | 75
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