A Taste of Blackberries Links

This page will help you explore A Taste of Blackberries by Doris Buchanan Smith.

As we begin Chapter One, use the following two links to explore what blackberries are and some of the ways people use them:

http://www.kstrom.net/isk/food/blaktrib.html

http://altnature.com/library/blackber.htm

Stranger Danger! Jamie and the narrator take an incredible risk in Chapter Two. Read about Stranger Danger on the link below. It’s from a Police Department in England, but the information is just as true here as it is there. Make sure to copy the rules in your notes. 

 http://www.gloucestershire.police.uk/kids_aware/3.html

Also, check out the tips on internet safety from the same site:

http://www.gloucestershire.police.uk/kids_aware/6.html

As we begin Chapter Three, use these links to explore what Japanesse Bettles are and find out a bit more about honey bees and bumble bees:

http://www.ivyhall.district96.k12.il.us/4TH/KKHP/1insects/japbeetle.html

http://www.ivyhall.district96.k12.il.us/4TH/KKHP/1insects/honeybee.html  (make sure to click on the drawing to get the key facts).

http://www.ivyhall.district96.k12.il.us/4TH/KKHP/1insects/bumblebee.html

Chapter Four is very sad, indeed. The narrator doesn’t understand how a bee sting or two could hurt someone so much. Check out the facts on bee strings and allegies on the following links:

http://www.lanakids.com/beeware.html

http://kidshealth.org/kid/health_problems/allergiesimmune/allergies.html

Chapter Five has a lot to do with grief. It is very hard to lose someone close to you, and people often go through a process of grief. Imagine you’re the narrator’s friend. To find out a bit about what the grieving process looks like, take a look at the following link. We’ll try to track the narrator as he moves through this process.

http://www.kidshealth.org/kid/talk/qa/family_friend_died.html

In Chapter Six, as the narrator sits in Mullins’ garden and thinks about Jamie, he wonders over all the different plants and animals Ms. Mullins has growing there. Places filled with all sorts of plants and animals are often wonderful places to think and read. Look at the links below to see some of the plants and animals that populate our region. We’ll use what you see to add some life to our room by creating a Texas garden billboard.Go to the following pages to get some ideas for drawings you might create for the board.

Hit this link to see plants and animals from Texas:  http://www.wildtexas.com/ . Make sure to pay particular attention to the “Your Photos” tab on the left side of the screen, where park users have posted their wildlife photos.

You may use this site to find out about animals that live right here in Houston: http://www.houstonnaturecenter.org/conservation.asp . Pay attention to all of the species in the region.

Don’t forget Texas flowers http://www.lone-star.net/wildflowers/flowers.htm .

Chapters Seven and Eight deal with what people do after someone has passed. It can be very improtant for people who are grieving to find a good way to honor or remember those who have died. Look at the following article to see how one young girl honored her grandfather:

http://www.kidshealth.org/kid/feeling/home_family/carly_story.html