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Teaching Savvy

Why be normal when you can be paranormal?

  • Activities: 13
  • Quiz Questions: 185

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Savvy tells the story of Mibs and her family, each member of which gets a special power—or "savvy"—on their thirteenth birthday. As it turns out, though, being able to control electricity or always bake a perfect pie can be kind of a pain when you have to hide it from the rest of the world.

Ingrid Law's novel is about families and friends trying to adjust to powerful changes in their lives. Ultimately, it should leave your elementary school students feeling pretty good: the core theme in the book is that everyone has unique gifts that must discovered, controlled, and used.

Awww.

In this guide, you'll find

  • an exploration of the theme of family, followed by an activity based around creating savvies for students' own family members.
  • an art-tastic lesson analyzing the cultural relevance of tattoos, Mib's power, and personal expression.
  • a chance for your students to write their own color poems based on their unique strengths.

In the end, savvies turn out to be an excellent trick to have up your sleeve—just like our guide to Savvy.

What's Inside Shmoop's Literature Teaching Guides

Shmoop is a labor of love from folks who love to teach. Our teaching guides will help you supplement in-classroom learning with fun, engaging, and relatable learning materials that bring literature to life.

Inside each guide you'll find quizzes, activity ideas, discussion questions, and more—all written by experts and designed to save you time. Here are the deets on what you get with your teaching guide:

  • 13 – 18 Common Core-aligned activities to complete in class with your students, including detailed instructions for you and your students.
  • Discussion and essay questions for all levels of students.
  • Reading quizzes for every chapter, act, or part of the text.
  • Resources to help make the book feel more relevant to your 21st-century students.
  • A note from Shmoop’s teachers to you, telling you what to expect from teaching the text and how you can overcome the hurdles.

Want more help teaching Teaching Savvy?

Check out all the different parts of our corresponding learning guide.



Instructions for You

Objective: We just can't stop talking about the fun way that Ingrid Law incorporates the special talents into the Beaumont family. Each family member's savvy is also a reflection of who they are as people. It makes us wonder what our savvies would be if they were based solely on our personalities. We think ours would have something to do with s'mores.

This is a quickish lesson that should take about 40 minutes. Students will analyze their unique talents and personality and dig deeper into a few important quotes.

Materials Needed: Post-it notes, color poem template/pattern, access to this list of color names, access to computers/internet to type out and "decorate" color poems

Step 1: Ask students a little set-up question to introduce the activity. Pass out the Post-it notes and instruct students to answer the following question on the paper: What is something special about you?

Allow students time to think and fill out the Post-it, letting them know that they don't need to add their names to the note.

You might even model this by writing your own and sharing with the class.

Step 2: Provide a spot on the wall or on the white board where students can come up and stick their special Post-its. Read a select few out loud, commenting with approval on the uniqueness that we all possess.

Step 3: Next, provide the following two quotes on the board, whether they be handwritten or typed and projected:

"You have to let your own know-how, your own unique color, shine through as a something special" (14.7).

"A savvy's not a sickness or a disease, Mibs," Grandpa told me. "It's not magic or sorcery, either. Your savvy's in your blood. It's an inheritance, like your brown eyes or your grandma's long toes or her talent for dancing to polka music" (14.3).

Read the quotes out loud or have them read by students.

Step 4: Ask a few questions. If you think these questions are too personal to share out loud, encourage students to write down their responses in their language arts journals.

  • Let's get real: What is "savvy" a metaphor for?
  • Why might the Beaumonts resent or dislike their savvies?
  • Do you ever dislike what makes you special or unique? Why?
  • How does Momma use the idea of "paint colors" to demonstrate a "well-scumbled savvy"?
  • What is a "well-scumbled savvy"?

Step 5: Students will now write their own color poems. Ask students which color they would identify as being the best to describe that unique characteristic or ability that makes them special. Show them this list of colors and their unique names so that students can get into the creative colorful spirit. (We think a lot can be done with "anti-flash white" and "British racing green.")

From there, help them follow the color poem template:

(Color) is…
(Color) tastes like…
(Color) smells like…
(Color) sounds like…
(Color) feels like…
(Color) looks like…
(Color) makes me…
(Color) is…

Here's an example to help everyone get started:

Cosmic latte is a mellow day.
Cosmic latte tastes like vanilla and cream.
Cosmic latte smells like coffee in the morning.
Cosmic latte sounds like the wind in the trees.
Cosmic latte feels like a peaceful breeze.
Cosmic latte looks like a bird in the sky.
Cosmic latte makes me want to take an afternoon nap.
Cosmic latte is easygoing.

Okay, we admit. It seems totally weird. However, allowing students to work with metaphors is one of the best ways to develop logic and reasoning skills.

If you are able to, have students type their poems out and add relevant color and pictures to the page. Have them title the poem creatively, in a way that mentions their name and their own particular brand of special. This is a great way to bring further depth to the color poem and personal metaphors.

Step 6: Post the color poems around the room because, seriously, these are awesome personal expressions of your newly logically thinking students.

Instructions for Your Students

We just can't stop talking about the fun way that Ingrid Law incorporates the special talents into the Beaumont family. Each family member's savvy is also a reflection of who they are as people. It makes us wonder what our savvies would be if they were based solely on our personalities.

In this lesson, you'll think about your own unique talents and personality and dig deeper into a few important quotes. Then you'll think of a color that matches your savvy and try out your poetry skills—it'll be fun, we promise.

Step 1: You're about to receive a Post-it. Don't stick these on your teacher's car. Instead, respond to the following question: What is something special about you? Think. Fill out the Post-it accordingly.

Step 2: Go ahead and stick your note to the designated "sticking spot."

Step 3: Mibs and her entire family had some pretty unique characteristics. Even so, these special talents did not feel like blessings all of the time. Often, Mibs and her siblings felt that their uniqueness was more of a curse. These quotes show that Mom and Grandpa had a different take:

"You have to let your own know-how, your own unique color, shine through as a something special" (14.7).

"A savvy's not a sickness or a disease, Mibs," Grandpa told me. "It's not magic or sorcery, either. Your savvy's in your blood. It's an inheritance, like your brown eyes or your grandma's long toes or her talent for dancing to polka music" (14.3).

Step 4: As a class, you'll discuss these questions or answer them in your journal (or both):

  • Why might the Beaumonts resent or dislike their savvies?
  • Do you ever dislike what makes you special or unique? Why?
  • How does Momma use the idea of "paint colors" to demonstrate a "well-scumbled savvy"?
  • What's a "well-scumbled savvy"?

Step 5: You'll write your own color poem that corresponds to your unique quality. Don't let poetic stress get to you—poetry can be awesome if you give it a chance. Working with metaphors is good for the soul. Now, if you were a color, which color would you be?

Check out this list of colors and their unique names so that you can get into the creative, colorful spirit. (We think a lot can be done with "anti-flash white" and "British racing green.")

Check out the color poem template below:

(Color) is…
(Color) tastes like…
(Color) smells like…
(Color) sounds like…
(Color) feels like…
(Color) looks like…
(Color) makes me…
(Color) is…

Here's an example to help everyone get started:

Cosmic latte is a mellow day.
Cosmic latte tastes like a coffee in space.
Cosmic latte smells like the coffee aisle at the grocery store.
Cosmic latte sounds like the wind in the trees.
Cosmic latte feels like a peaceful breeze.
Cosmic latte looks like a bird in the sky.
Cosmic latte makes me want to take an afternoon nap.
Cosmic latte is easygoing.

Time to write your poem in your chosen color. Post pictures from the Internet that encapsulate (capture) who you are and why the color was chosen. Give your poem a cool title that mentions your name and your own particular brand of special.

Step 6: Your teacher is probably going to post these poems around the room because, seriously, they're awesome personal expressions. So do yourself proud.