Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

Think about adventure stories with which you are familiar. What are the different types of friendships portrayed in these stories? Are friends close-knit and supportive from the beginning, or must they build trust and overcome initial differences? Why are stories about friendship and adventure popular with a wide array of audiences?

Teaching Suggestion: This question provides an opportunity to introduce the theme The Bond of Friendship. Students might work in pairs to brainstorm adventure titles before working independently on the remaining questions. Discussion of familiar examples from pop culture such as the Harry Potter series or The Wizard of Oz might be helpful in inspiring additional titles for students to reference.

• Friendship Quotes - This article provides quotations about friendship from various stories. Students might analyze these quotations as an activity relating to discussion on different types of friendships.
• “Iconic Literary Friendships” - This article offers examples of well-known friendships in literature. (Teacher-appropriate; not student-facing without teacher guidance due to mature themes in some examples.