The Widow's Broom

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    One evening a witch is flying on her broom when it loses the ability to fly. The witch falls and lands in the garden near Mina Shaw’s house. Mina Shaw, who is a widow, takes the witch in until she recovers. When she is well, the witch calls a friend to take her home and leaves the broom at Minna Shaw’s house. Minna Shaw finds out that even though the broom might not be able to fly, it can still do wondrous things!

    This unit has been developed with activities and worksheets that are aligned with the Texas Essential Skills and Knowledge for easy curriculum integration.  There is a video where the story is told in American Sign Langauge by Russell Harvard to help Deaf and Hard of Hearing students make better connections with the story and text to increase their literacy skills.

Activities

  • Analogies

    the widow's broom worksheet

    Length of Activity: 15 minutes
    Directions: Fill in the blanks with the correct analogy.

     

    Character Analysis

    the widow's broom character worksheet
    Length of Activity: 20 minutes
    Directions: Compare the relationship between Minna Shaw and the broom, and Mr. Spivey and the broom.  Write specific examples.

     

    Comprehension Questions

    the widow's broom comprehension worksheet
    Length of Activity: 10 minutes
    Directions: Answer the questions in complete sentences.

     

    Context Clues

    the widow's broom context clues worksheet
    Length of Activity: 15 minutes
    Directions: Read Chris Van Allsburg's sentences below from The Widow's Broom.  Use the contect clues from the sentences to write a definition for each of the underlined words.

    Inferences

    the widow's broom inferences worksheet
    Length of Activity: 25 minutes
    Directions: Make four inferences while reading The Widow's Broom.

    Moral

    the widow's broom moral worksheet
    Length of Activity: 20 minutes
    Directions: Write the moral of the story.  Give details to explain how you came to this conclusion.

     

    Point of View

    the widow's broom point of view worksheet
    Length of Activity: 15 minutes
    Directions: In each pair of glasses, explain/define/or show examples of that point of view.  When you are done, identify what point of view The Widow's Broom is written in. Provide examples.

    the widow's broom predictions worksheet

    Length of Activity: 20 minutes
    Directions: View the first five pages of The Widow's Broom and study the illustrations (do not read the text).  When you are done, make four predictions you have for the story.

    Punctuation

    the widow's broom punctuation worksheet
    Length of Activity: 25 minutes
    Directions: Read the passage below from Chris Van Allsburg's The Widow's Broom.  Determine where punctuation (including commas, apostrophes, periods, etc) should be, and add them.  Be sure to make necessary edits to capitalization where necessary.

     

    Sensory Images

    the widow's broom sensory worksheet
    Length of Activity: 20 minutes
    Directions: What are sensory images?  In the chart below, draw five pictures to represent the five senses.  During or after reading The Widow's Broom, categorize Chris Van Allsburg's sensory details.

    Summary

    the widow's broom summary worksheet
    Length of Activity: 20 minutes
    Directions: Write a summary of the story The Widow's Broom.  

    Writing

    the widow's broom writing worksheet
    Length of Activity: 1 hour
    Directions: Write a story about a broom left at your house by a witch.  Explain all of it's magical powers and what happens when your neighbors and friends find out about it.