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Agenda

1. Program Overview

2. Volunteer Intro

3. Icebreaker in Breakout Room

4. Show & Tell your partner(s)

5. Q&A

Learner Agreement & Expectations:

Attend the virtual meetings regularly and punctually.

Be respectful and mute yourself when you have background noises.

Turn on your camera if possible.

Participate actively.

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Program Duration: March 18-May 10, 2025

Virtual Meeting Schedule:

Tuesdays, 5-6 pm

Fridays, 3-4 pm

Zoom Link:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81835953646?pwd=ODKgbr4tpIOIRpVwejr35OCY6k6C6a.1

Meeting ID: 818 3595 3646

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📚 First Meeting on Tuesday, March 18, 2025: Meet everyone in the class & get to know each other!

🔹Class Time: 5-6 pm

🔹Zoom Link:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81835953646?pwd=ODKgbr4tpIOIRpVwejr35OCY6k6C6a.1

Meeting ID: 818 3595 3646

The link remains the same for all meetings on Zoom. Please bookmark it. Thank you.

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Agenda

1. Vocab Preview

2. Read aloud

3. Comprehension Questions

4. Discussion questions

5. *Role-Play (if applicable)

1 Kim (Vietnam) p1-3

Vocabulary

teeter (v)

Vacant (adj) lot

lot

Scouted (adj)

gnawing (adj)

hover over

break ground

pods

plump

sprout

thrive

spread

Comprehension Questions

1. Where is Kim’s family from?

2. What was Kim’s father?

3. How old was Kim when her father passed away?

4. Why did Kim want to plant the beans?

Post-Reading Discussion

1. What do you think will happen in the story? What will grow? Why do you think so?

2. Do you garden? What do you plant?

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📚 Join the Fun! Sign Up Today!

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1 - Kim

2 - Ana

3 - Wendell

4 - Gonzalo

5 - Leona

6 - Sam

7 - Virgil

8 - Sae Young

9 - Curtis

10 - Nora

11 - Maricela

12 - Amir

13 - Florence

Sources:

YouTube - Reading with Mrs. Carter

YouTube - WILLOW ANDERSON

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Agenda

1. Hello!

2. Vocabulary Preview

3. Read-Aloud

4. Breakout Discussion

5. Main Room: Comprehension Questions

4. Main Room: Discussion Questions

5. *Role-Play (if applicable)

2 Ana (Local, White) p4-8

Vocabulary

history (n)

coal wagons (n)

lad (n)

Romanians (n)

Slovaks (n)

steel mills

abandoned (adj)

suspiciously (adv)

bury (v)

parole (n)

disappear (v)

crunch (v)

hobble down

flights of stairs

binoculars

Comprehension Questions

1. Where does Ana live?

2. What did Ana see out of her window?

3. What did Ana think Kim was doing at first?

4. How did she feel after she dug out the beans that Kim had planted?

5. What did she do after that?

Post-Reading Discussion

1. Have you heard the phrase, “the benefit of the doubt”? Do you think it’s reasonable to always give people the benefit of the doubt? Why?

2. Do you people-watch? Explain.

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Agenda

1. Hello!

2. Reminder: Padlet Comments

3. Vocabulary Preview

4. Read-Aloud

5. Breakout: Discussion Questions

6. Main Room: Discussion Questions

3 Wendell (Kentucky, White) p9-12

Vocabulary

wreck (n)

jerk (v)

drag (v)

wilted (adj)

twist (v)

pitcher (n)

janitor (n)

scrape (v)

stone-still (adj)

toss out (v)

plot (n)

squat down (v)

Comprehension Questions

1. Where does Wendell live?

2. Where is he from?

3. What does he do for a living?

4. What happened to his son and wife?

5. What did Ana ask him to do?

6. What did he decide to do after his encounter with Kim?

Post-Reading Discussion

1. Do you agree that giving is receiving? Why?

2. What did you learn from Wendell’s story?

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Seedfolks: Chapter 3 (Wendell) Read Aloud

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Agenda

1. Hello! & Icebreaker

2. Revisit Chapter 3 Read-Aloud

3. Vocabulary Preview

4. Read-Aloud

5. Breakout: Discussion Questions

6. Main Room: Discussion Questions

4 Gonzalo (Guatemala) p13-17

Vocabulary

equation (n)

Guatemala (n)

get by (phrasal verb)

mumbles & smiles

faint (v)

wander (v)

beauty parlor (n)

pawnshop (n)

manhole (n)

notice (v)

be wrapped up

troughs (n)

Comprehension Questions

1. Where did Gonzalo come from?

2. What is Garcia’s Equation?

3. What does it mean by “The older you are, the younger you get when you move to the United States?”

4. Why does Gonzalo need to watch Tío Juan after school?

5. Who did Tío Juan meet at the vacant lot?

6. Why does Gonzalo say Tío Juan’s changed from a baby back into a man?

Post-Reading Discussion

1. Is language a barrier? How did you feel when you couldn’t understand or speak English?

2. Do you agree that “the older you are, the younger you get when you move to the United States?”

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Seedfolks: Chapter 4 (Gonzalo) Read Aloud

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Agenda

1. Hello & Icebreaker

2. Continue with Chapter 4 Questions

3. Chapter 5 Read-Aloud

4. Breakout: Questions

5. Main Room: Questions

5 Leona (from Atlanta, Black) p18-22

Vocabulary

goldenrod (n)

nutmeg (n)

declare (v)

burst (v)

outlive (v)

recite (v)

slobs (n)

haul away (v)

stretch out (v)

hog pens (n)

maggots (n)

dolled-up receptionist (n)

Comprehension Questions

1. What’s Leona’s race?

2. How old are her kids?

3. What is the purpose of telling Leona’s Granny’s story?

4. What does Leona want to do at the vacant lot?

5. Why did she make phone calls?

6. What did she do to reach her goals?

Post-Reading Discussion

1. Have you ever had to wait for a long time when you have called a government agency? How did you feel? Is it the same in your home country?

2. Have you ever done something for the community, not for yourself or your family? If so, what happened? What inspired you to do that?

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1. Hello & Icebreaker

2. Continue with Chapter 5 Questions

3. Chapter 6 Read-Aloud

4. Breakout: Questions

5. Main Room: Questions

6 Sam (local white) p23-28

Vocabulary

herring (n)

jumpsuit (n)

Persian (adj)

occupation (n)

patch up (phrasal verb)

promote (v)

Pacifism (n)

battlefields (n)

compromise (v)

squatting (n)

spigot (n)

moist (adj)

rip out (phrasal verb)

barbed wire (n)

paradise (n)

Comprehension Questions

1. How old is Sam?

2. What was his occupation?

3. Why did Sam call the garden “Paradise”?

4. What were the two problems of the garden?

5. What did the garden become?

Post-Reading Discussion

1. Is it a bad thing that people from the same culture stick together? Why?

2. Would you put up a fence around your space in the garden if you were one of the gardeners? Why?

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1. Hello

2. Icebreaker: Continue with Chapter 6 Questions

3. Chapter 7 Read-Aloud

4. Breakout: Questions

5. Main Room: Questions

7 Virgil (Haitian, 5th grader) p29-35

Vocabulary

electrocuted (adj)

turn the soil

locket (n)

slouching (v)

plantation (n)

stare (v)

extended family (n)

wrinkled (adj)

babbling (v)

shriveled (adj)

practically (adv)

count on (phrasal verb)

stomp (v)

scrape off (phrasal verb)

Comprehension Questions

1. Where is Virgil’s family from?

2. What did Virgil’s father plan on planting?

3. How does Virgil feel about it?

4. What happened to their crops?

5. Why did Virgil whisper to the locket he found?

Post-Reading Discussion

1. Where is your source of learning? How do you learn new knowledge and skills?

2. Do you think it’s okay to lie like Virgil’s father did to claim more gardening spaces? Have you ever been in a dilemma of honesty and loyalty?

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1. Hello

2. Icebreaker: Continue with Chapter 7 Questions

3. Chapter 8 Read-Aloud

4. Breakout: Questions

5. Main Room: Questions

8 Sae Young (Korea) p36-39

Vocabulary

sew (v)

alteration (n)

hoe (n)

fire hydrant (n)

interrupt (v)

sprouts (n)

funnel (n)

contest (n)

thunderstorm (n)

scoop something out of

Comprehension Questions

1. Where is Sae Young from originally?

2. Why did she come to the U.S.?

3. What happened to Sae Young that left her all alone and afraid of people?

4. Why did she start gardening? How does she feel when she is at the garden?

5. What is the winning idea for the contest to solve the water problem?

6. What did Sae Young do to help?

Post-Reading Discussion

1. Sae Young was treated unjustly. Did you ever face unjust treatment after coming to the US?

2. What is one thing someone did to make you feel you are part of a community?

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📚 Meet the Author: Paul Fleischman

🔹Event Date: Tuesday, May 6, 2025

🔹Event Time: 5-6 pm: Meet the author, Paul Fleischman, virtually on Zoom.

🔹Zoom Link:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81835953646?pwd=ODKgbr4tpIOIRpVwejr35OCY6k6C6a.1

Meeting ID: 818 3595 3646

Please show up 5 minutes earlier for today's meeting.

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PAUL FLEISCHMAN’S OFFICIAL WEBSITE--New books, Articles, Excerpts, Biography, Q & A, Backlist.

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9 Curtis (local black) p40-45

Vocabulary

deltoids (n)

pecs (n)

quads (n)

biceps (n)

cut somebody loose (v)

brush off (v)

fool around (v)

give somebody deeds (v)

stakes (n)

tie something up (v)

blight (n)

fertilizer (n)

jungle beast (n)

homies (n)

ripe (adj)

grass clippings (n)

sacked out

pitchfork (n)

insect (n)

reach in (phrasal verb)

banged up

Comprehension Questions

1. Why did Curtis talk about “deltoids, pecs, and quads” in the beginning?

2. When Curtis was 23, his girlfriend was Lateesha. What happened to them?

3. Why did Curtis start planting tomatoes?

4. Who is Royce? What happened to Royce?

5. What is Curtis’s deal with Royce?

Post-Reading Discussion

1. What do you think it means by “Don’t judge a book by its cover”? Is it easy or hard to do? Why?

2. Have you ever made friends with someone who you were afraid of the first time you met him/her? Tell us about your experience.

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Agenda

1. Main Room: Chapter 9 Remaining Questions

2. Read-Aloud

3. Main Room: Chapter 10 Questions

4. Main Room: Chapter 10 Questions

Nora (British) p46-51

Vocabulary

prams (n)

gales (n)

vegetating (adj)

uplifting (adj)

decline (v)

obliged (adj)

nostrils (n)

command

upstream

haphazard (adj)

entranced (adj)

decisively (adv)

barrel

suspense (n)

tremolo (n)

bob up (phrasal verb)

customary refuge

pantomime (v)

loom (n)

restrain (v)

Comprehension Questions

1. What is Nora’s relationship with Mr. Myles?

2. How does the garden affect Mr. Myles?

3. What did Mr. Myles choose to plant in the garden?

4. What does the sentence mean when Nora said, “He was a salmon traveling upstream through his past.”

5. What does Nora mean when she said, “Gardening is a soap opera growing out of the ground”?

6. What does Nora mean when she said, “We, like our seeds, were now planted in the garden”?

Post-Reading Discussion

1. Do you agree with Nora that “gardening is a soap opera growing out of the ground?”

2. What gives you hope in your life? Why?

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11 Maricela (Mexico, pregnant 16-year old teenager) p52-57

Vocabulary

sneak in (phrasal verb)

wrestler (n)

drop out (phrasal verb)

ask out (phrasal verb)

scum (n)

miscarry (v)

abortion (n)

adoption (n)

witness (n)

miracle (n)

radish (n)

gopher (n)

wipe something out (phrasal verb)

blimp (n)

cheerful (adj)

decorum (n)

peel out (phrasal verb)

rubber (n)

tune out (phrasal verb)

put somebody into a daze

disgrace (n/v)

chain gang (n)

Comprehension Questions

1. How does Maricela feel about her pregnancy?

2. Does Maricela still go to high school?

3. How does Maricela start working on the garden?

4. What is Leona’s influence on Maricela?

5. What does it mean when Leona said, “Whole city shuts down, but the garden just keeps going”?

Post-Reading Discussion

1. Is teenage pregnancy a problem in your country?

2. What is your opinion about abortion and adoption?

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Agenda

1. Chapter 11 - Maricela: What is your summary?

2. Chapter 12 - Amir: Read-Aloud

3. Chapter 12 - Amir: Questions

12 Amir (India) p58-64

Vocabulary

vast (adj)

foes (n)

crevices (n)

dweller (n)

portable (adj)

eerie (adj)

chase

criminal (n)

Poles/Polish

stutter (v)

roam (v)

exploit (v)

harvest (v)

trade

show off (phrasal verb)

Comprehension Questions

1. Where is Amir from?

2. What does he do for a living?

3. What did he plant in the garden?

4. What changed after he started gardening?

5. What does he mean when he said, “He was not a black teenage boy. He was Royce.”?

Post-Reading Discussion

1. Do you know of any stereotypes? Give an example of a stereotype against people from your home country. How true is the stereotype in your opinion?

2. Do you have any similar experiences as Amir had in the story? Tell your story.

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📚 Seedfolks In-Person Celebration

Join us for a special Seedfolks In-Person Celebration at the Downtown Library! 🌱📖

📅 Date: Saturday, May 10, 2025
🕑 Time: 2:00 – 4:00 PM
📍 Location: Fremont Bank Room, 2nd Floor, Downtown Library

Watch the story come to life with a Readers Theater performance, where participants will read aloud and bring the characters to life--no memorizing needed! Seedfolks is about people coming together to grow a garden and a community.

Come support the readers, enjoy the presentation, and have some light snacks. We hope to see you there! 🌻

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13 Florence (local retired black woman with arthritis) p65-69

Vocabulary

slave (n)

homestead (n)

spigots (n)

landlord (n)

arthritis (n)

fire escapes (n)

proud (adj)

protective (adj)

welfare (n)

drain away (phrasal verb)

frost (n)

cornstalks (n)

shiver (v)

faith (n)

melt (v)

glacier (n)

trowel (n)

swallow

Comprehension Questions

1. What is the definition of “seedfolks” by Florence’s father? Why did he call his grandparents their seedfolks?

2. Why did Florence watch, not garden herself?

3. Why were the landlords of the apartments charging more on the units facing the garden?

4. Who was the first person she saw back in the garden after the winter was over? How did she feel about it?

Post-Reading Discussion:

1. In your opinion, what events or activities do you think will bring a community together? Why?

2. How do you feel about your community? Do you feel that you belong? Share a personal experience that you feel welcome or unwelcome in your community.