The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster

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The Phantom Tollboothby Norton Juster

• A Literary Quest for 6 Grade Collaboration,
  Exploration and Imagination

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A Literary Adventure

• I first read The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton
  Juster, as an adult. I became enamored with the
  book, its figurative language, wordplay, and the
  sheer creativity of making language come alive
  and represent something completely unique. While
  reading the book, it is almost impossible NOT to
  think of the immense educational opportunities
  for students. As with any good book, every time
  I re-read The Phantom Tollbooth, I discover
  something new or interpret a familiar passage in
  a completely new way! Join me as we take a quick
  journey along with Milo, to see how to
  incorporate The Phantom Tollbooth into an amazing
  learning adventure!

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Meet MiloIt seems to me that almost everything
is a waste of time, he remarked one day as he
walked dejectedly home from school. And, since
no one bothered to explain otherwise, he regarded
the process of seeking knowledge as the greatest
waste of time of all. (9)

• Like many of our students, Milo would rather be
  somewhere else, doing something else. Nothing
  captures his attention for long, for hes
  perpetually bored and restless.
• In the story, Milo returns home after a typical
  non-eventful school day, to discover a large box
  in his room. With its contents, Milo constructs
  a magical tollbooth which transports him to the
  Kingdom of Wisdom. He is given a map, some coins
  to pay the toll, precautionary road signs, and a
  book of rules and traffic regulations.

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The TollboothOne genuine turnpike
tollbootheasily assembled at home, and for use
by those who have never traveled in lands
beyond. (12) Results are not guaranteed, but
if not perfectly satisfied, your wasted time will
be refunded. Tollbooth directions (13)

• In the world of education, our tollbooth is the
  school door The map, our curriculum Our
  kingdom, the school building Our traveling
  companions, the other faculty and staff The
  traveler, our students. As educators, how can we
  ensure that our students get the most out of
  their educational travels?
• Media specialists have the advantage of working
  with the entire faculty and student body, knowing
  the entire curriculum, and having the skills to
  incorporate collaboration and information
  literacy into every aspect of education.
• How can media specialists help teachers integrate
  literature and collaboration into many of their
  lessons? By thinking outside of the box (or
  through the tollbooth), media specialists have a
  unique opportunity to introduce teachers to
  literature that meets a variety of curriculum
  needs, with methods and ideas to peak student
  interest. Danny Callison states, Collaboration
  does not take place because on an educator needs
  the others expertise as much as the
  collaboration is built on shared goals and
  knowledge that are enriched by a partnership for
  instruction. (2001)

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Instructions for Assembly

• The following slides are a combination of ideas
  and learning opportunities presented within the
  context of The Phantom Tollbooth, as they could
  be suggested by a media specialist to teachers.
  They can be used to support comprehension of the
  book or to expand upon the books ideas to
  enhance student learning. Ive included an
  occasional standard from the Fourth Grade Indiana
  Academic Standards, to demonstrate how these
  activities meet additional educational standards
  as well. The slides follow the plot, as Milo
  makes his way through the Kingdom of Wisdom.
  Throughout the slides, Ive added a few
  cautionary road signs of my own, to aid in our
  exploration. Be sure to look for the following
  signs
• Stop Sign Journal or inquiry opportunities
• Slow Sign Take time to enjoy these fun
  activities
• Curves Ahead Multiple educational opportunities
  rolled into one concept
• Detour An idea for extended study
• The tollbooth has been constructed. Open your
  book and your minds. Its time for our journey
  to begin.

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ExpectationsExpectations is the place you must
always go before you get to where you are going.
Of course, some people never get beyond
Expectations. the Whether Man (19)

• Through the tollbooth, the first person Milo
  encounters is the Whether man. The Whether Man
  predicts not the weather, but whether people can
  make their own decisions.
• Can you define whether?
• Place whether in a sentence with a clear
  context clue.  
• We should try to meet them whether it's raining
  or not.

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The DoldrumsWell, continued the Watchdog,
since you got here by not thinking, it seems
reasonable to expect that, in order to get out,
you must start thinking. Milo began to think as
hard as he couldAnd as he thought, the wheels
began to turn. (31)

• It is here that Milo meets Tock the Watchdog, a
  dog whose body is made of a large clock. Explore
  compound words (language arts). Explore time
  zones (geography) time as years, months, weeks,
  hours, minutes, etc
• In the Doldrums, Milo encounters the
  Lethargarians, who promote laziness. What can we
  do to give our bodies energy? Discuss proper
  nutrition and exercise. (health, physical
  education)

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Dictionopolis

• In Dictionopolis, the word market is like a
  Scrabble game. In Scrabble, letters are given
  point values according to their use- the more
  frequently a letter is used, the lower the point
  value. In the word market, letters taste
  according to their use, the more frequently the
  letter is used, the sweeter it tastes. Using
  Scrabble tiles, add up the values of this weeks
  spelling words. Which word has the most points?
  Which word has the least? Which word would taste
  the best? Why?
• In small groups, view one page or paragraph of a
  book. Begin to count Which word occurs most
  frequently? Which letter is used most
  frequently? How many words in a sentence? How
  many sentences in a paragraph? How can we show
  this information in a graph?
• Spelling Bee- Spell this weeks words or
  frequently used vocabulary.

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King Azaz the Unabridged- Ruler of Dictionopolis

• King Azaz the Unabridged is the ruler of
  Dictionopolis. The Media Specialist can review
  or introduce the following literacy skills and
  terminology- abridged vs. unabridged the use of
  dictionary guide words the use of dictionary
  versus a thesaurus.
• The members of the Dictionopolis Cabinet use as
  many words as possible to explain a situation.
  Explore synonyms- write 8 words to describe you,
  then look them up in thesaurus to find synonyms
  to those words. How can we enrich our writing by
  using synonyms?

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Faintly Macabretoday people use as many words
as they can and think themselves very wise for
doing so. For always remember that while it is
wrong to use too few words, it is far worse to
use too many. - Faintly Macabre (68).

• To Faintly Macabre (a which, not a witch),
  Silence is Golden. Explore figurative
  language clichés, metaphors, similes, oxymoron,
  puns, irony, etcWhat kinds of phrases do you
  hear your parents or grandparents say? What
  kinds of phrases do you say? Explore popular
  sayings or phrases from recent decades and
  compare them to current language trends.
  (example groovy vs. sweet)
• Compare and contrast sentences that essentially
  have the same meaning, but contain a
  significantly different number of words. Which
  sentence sounds better? Which is easiest to
  understand? In what situation is each sentence
  more appropriate?

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The Princesses Sweet Rhyme and Pure Reason

• It was the princesses who kept harmony in the
  Kingdom of Wisdom. Discuss why King Azaz and the
  Mathemagician are at war. Why do these two
  kingdoms disagree? What types of characters are
  found in each kingdom? Think of reasons why
  countries go to war today. What, besides rhyme
  and reason, can bring peace to our world?

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The Royal Feast

• Milo learns at the Royal Feast that he must eat
  his words. Ask the assistance of the Cafeteria
  Staff to create word pancakes (students write
  words with batter onto a griddle using a ketchup
  bottle). Other options alphabet soup, Alphabets
  cereal. Similar to Milo, students must create a
  three word speech to eat.

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Chroma the Great and the Colorful Symphony

• Discuss colors and interpret how they make us
  feel. Look at a variety of paintings and discuss
  how color impacts what the painting/ artist is
  trying to convey.
• listen to a variety of symphony performances.
  How does the music evoke feeling? If they were
  playing colors, what colors do you hear?
• Chromas symphony plays the colors of the world,
  without which, the world would look like a blank
  coloring book- a white background with black
  lines. Allow for coloring time while listening
  to symphony pieces. Did the music inspire you to
  color a certain way or use specific colors?

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Dr. Dischord Dynne

• Dynne has collected all of the sounds.
• How do Deaf people function effectively and
  happily in a world without sound? Have small
  groups construct an inquiry about the various
  methods used by the Deaf in a hearing world.
• (communication sign language, oral
  communication, TTD devices, e-mail everyday
  devices used by the Deaf such as vibrating alarm
  clocks, hearing aids, closed captioning, flashing
  lights connected to doorbells and baby monitors,
  hearing dogs, etc)

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The Island of ConclusionsNow will you tell me
where we are? asked Tock as he looked around the
desolate island. To be sure, said Canby
youre on the island of Conclusions. But how
did we get here? asked Milo You jumped of
course, explained Canby, every time you decide
something without having a good reason, you jump
to Conclusions (168)

• With the PE teacher, explore moveable
  figurative language phrases hop to it, jump to
  conclusions, run amok, spring into action, roll
  with the punches, on a roll, walk in someone
  elses shoes, rub elbows, kick the bucket, etc...
  
• Explore idioms.
• Canby is introduced only if Milo can figure out
  the riddle. Explore the jokes, riddles, puns,
  limericks, poetry, plays, etc

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Stop and Pay Your Toll

• Journal Now that Milo has encountered
  Dictionopolis, what do you think will happen when
  he visits a place called Digitopolis? What might
  it be like there? Who might be the Ruler? How
  will Milo behave, as you know him from home and
  from his travels thus far?

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Digitopolis

• Create your own Digitopolis resident.

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The Mathemagician- Ruler of Digitopolis

• The Mathemagicians circular office corresponds
  to the points of a compass. Explore direction,
  using and reading maps and keys, using a compass.
  Map the playground or your own version of the
  Kingdom of Wisdom.

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The Land of Infinitysort of. Where the
tallest, the shortest, the biggest, the smallest,
and the most and the least of everything are
kept. The Mathemagician (191)

• Explore the term infinity.
• Explore averages What is the average amount of
  rainfall in Indiana? The USA? How many times a
  day do we change classrooms on average? How many
  people in the classroom eat hot lunch in a week
  on average?
• Like The Mathemagicians letter to King Azaz,
  write a letter using numbers only. (each letter
  of the alphabet corresponds to its number within
  the alphabet. A1, B2, etc) Decode a
  classmates letter.

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Stop and Pay Your Toll

• King Azaz and the Mathemagician were afraid Milo
  would fail to rescue the princesses if he knew
  the task was impossible. Journal Why do you
  think Milo agreed to the task? In what ways did
  Milo change from the boy he was before
  discovering the tollbooth?
• How is the Kingdom of Wisdom like your school or
  like your community? In small groups, construct a
  board game to demonstrate your school or
  community.

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The Castle in the Air

• Throughout his travels, Milos new friends gave
  him the tools he needed to be successful in
  rescuing the Princesses Sweet Rhyme and Pure
  Reason. As educators, we too, give our students
  the tools to be successful. Milos traveling
  companions helped to remind him of what he had
  and how to use it, and so must we remind students
  of how their prior knowledge and skills continue
  to assist them in new endeavors.
• As Rhyme reminds Milo, many places that you
  would like to see are just off the map and many
  things you want to know are just out of sight or
  a little beyond your reach. But someday, youll
  reach them all, for what you learn today, for no
  reason at all, will help you discover all the
  wonderful secrets of tomorrow.

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Avoid the Terrible Trivium!I am the Terrible
Trivium, demon of petty tasks and worthless jobs,
ogre of wasted effort and monster of habit. (213)

• It is easy to rely on workbooks and texts to
  guide our educational instruction. How much more
  interesting and valuable it can be for both
  students and educators to add inquiry and
  collaboration to our instruction. But, its not
  easy
• As the Terrible Trivium tells Milo, Think of all
  the trouble it saves If you only do the easy and
  useless jobs, youll never have to worry about
  the important ones which are so difficult.
• By enriching classroom activities with
  literature, or vice versa, we open new doors of
  discovery for our students. I hope that youve
  been as intrigued by Milos world as I am, and I
  hope that this brief presentation has been like a
  tollbooth to new kingdoms of ideas for you as
  educators. Our ride stops here, but the journey
  continuesin your classroom.

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Words of Wisdom from Rhyme and Reason

• You must never feel badly about making
  mistakes, explained Reason quietly, as long as
  you take the trouble to learn from them. For you
  often learn more by being wrong for the right
  reasons, than you do by being right for the wrong
  reasons. (233)
• but its not just learning things thats
  important. Its learning what to do with what
  you learn and learning why you learn things at
  all that matters. - Rhyme (223)

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Perhaps a Smaller Kingdom?

• Though a wide variety of units and areas of study
  have been explored here, one could instead create
  a kingdom within a classroom- set up a variety of
  stations for students to explore some of these
  activities and work their way through Milos
  journey. Students can create a map and journal
  their experiences as they move through the story.

• Dictionopolis use the dictionary, thesaurus
• Digitopolis fractions, tangrams, time,
  measurement
• Valley of Sound using headphones-listen to
  symphony music
• Conduct with Chroma create your own colorful
  world.
• The Doldrums relax and read