76 pages • 2 hours read
Jerry CraftNew Kid
Fiction | Graphic Novel/Book | Middle Grade | Published in 2019A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
Introduction
New Kid
- Genre: Fiction; middle grade graphic novel
- Originally Published: 2019
- Reading Level/Interest: Lexile GN320L; grades 5-8
- Structure/Length: 14 chapters; approx. 256 pages; approx. 2 hours on audio
- Protagonist and Central Conflict: Jordan Banks, a Black middle school student who loves to draw cartoons about his experiences, attends a prestigious school where he encounters bullying and racism.
- Potential Sensitivity Issues: Racism
Jerry Craft, Author
- Bio: Grew up in NYC; graduated from The Fieldston School; received his bachelor’s degree in fine arts from the School of Visual Arts; creator of the 1990 comic strip Mama’s Boyz; cofounder of the Schomburg Center’s Annual Black Comic Book Festival
- Other Works: Class Act (2020)
- Awards: Newbery Medal (2020); Coretta Scott King Book Awards Author Award (2020); Kirkus Prize for Young Readers’ Literature (2019)
CENTRAL THEMES connected and noted throughout this Teaching Unit:
- Finding Confidence in Middle School
- Maintaining a Black Identity in School and at Home
- Balancing Friendships Across Social Class
STUDY OBJECTIVES: In accomplishing the components of this Unit, students will:
- Develop an understanding of microaggressions and code-switching.
- Read/study short paired texts and other resources to deepen understanding of themes related to Finding Confidence in Middle School, Maintaining a Black Identity at School and at Home, and Balancing Friendships Across Social Class.
- Create a graphic narrative to demonstrate their understanding of the graphic novel form as well as the theme of Finding Confidence in Middle School.
