A story about kids, relationships and accepting the things you cannot change
Grounded is the story about how three young friends each deal in their own way with polio when it strikes unexpectedly.
Marie narrowly escapes getting full-fledged polio, but her friend Billy never walks again after being attacked by the virus.
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Price for the novel and activity book: $20 CAD + shipping (calculated at checkout).
About the book
Have you ever had a huge disappointment in your life? Or maybe something bad happened to you that wasn’t your fault. If either of these scenarios applies to you, you will appreciate the dilemma that Marie and her friends find themselves in, in the story Grounded.
Although Grounded takes place in an era unfamiliar to you and a world that is very different from ours today, some things never change. Most everyone regardless of age or background at some time in their life faces a difficult challenge. Do you have a hard time at school? Were you adopted and struggle with that? Have you ever been bullied or had someone in your family leave? Maybe your favourite pet died, or you broke your leg before the most important game of the season.
The characters in Grounded face a different challenge. They are up against an invisible enemy. No one knows where the enemy is hiding or when it is going to attack, so the kids are more-less grounded for the whole summer holidays. This particular enemy doesn’t use guns but can kill and maim just the same, and it does. The enemy? POLIO. You may never have heard of polio. Luckily, we don’t have to worry about getting polio where we live today, because there is a vaccine to protect us. But we have other enemies like cancer.
This is not a sad story as one might think, but one of inspiration and hope. Maybe you’re in a wheelchair like Billy. Maybe like Marie, you don’t think you’re as pretty as your best friend. Whatever it is that might make you sad, the author weaves humorous incidents into the story that may make you giggle, maybe even laugh out loud!
To find out how Marie, Billy and Ricky, despite all odds, still manage to finally have “the best summer ever,” read Grounded and maybe you can too!
About the Activity Book
The activity book is suitable for ages 8+ and accompanies the novel. The 88-page Activity Book is a standard workbook size with a coil binding. It contains:
- curriculum links for language, religion/family life and social studies
- literary analysis activities
- connecting emotions to the story
- activities illustrating coping strategies for difficult situations
- invention exploration
- historical connections to pandemics and disease
- the impact of a widespread illness on society
- politics and disease
- vaccines and public health
- graphic design to illustrate understanding
- personal interview with people who have had polio
- racism in society (segregation and discrimination)
- resilience and empowerment
- baking and social connections
- timelines
- word search
- more resources about polio