Island of the Blue Dolphins

Island of the Blue Dolphins

• Genre: Fiction; middle grade historical adventure
• Originally Published: 1960
• Reading Level/Interest: Lexile 1000L; grades 4-7
• Structure/Length: 29 chapters; approx. 192 pages; approx. 4 hours on audio
• Protagonist and Central Conflict: Karana is 12 when Russian hunters come to her island. Though the chief of Karana’s village, her father, tries to deal with the hunters peacefully, disagreement soon erupts and many men in her village are killed. When the remaining inhabitants of the island leave for a new home, Karana is left behind and must find ways to survive hardships and loneliness. The novel is based on a true story from the mid-1850s.
• Potential Sensitivity Issues: Death of family members, including death of a child; descriptions of dead and injured animals

Scott O’Dell, Author

• Bio: 1898-1989; raised in California, where he loved the ocean; served in both World Wars; worked for Paramount and Metro Goldwyn Mayer in a variety of moviemaking jobs; moved toward a writing career as a journalist and editor; wrote fiction and nonfiction for adults before turning to children’s literature; wrote books for young readers after discovering the story of a young woman who lived alone for 18 years off the California coast; wrote 25 successful books for young readers after Island of the Blue Dolphins
• Other Works: The Black Pearl (1967); Sing Down the Moon (1970); The Child of Fire (1974); Castle in the Sea (1983); My Name is Not Angelica (1989)
• Awards: Newbery Medal winner (1961); Hans Christian Andersen Medal winner (1972)

CENTRAL THEMES connected and noted throughout this Teaching Unit:

• The Struggle for Survival and Self-Determination
• Learning from Nature
• Building Trust and Friendship

STUDY OBJECTIVES: In accomplishing the components of this Unit, students will:

• Develop an understanding of the historical context regarding California’s Channel Islands in the 1800s that inspired Island of the Blue Dolphins’ setting and plot.
• Study paired texts and other brief resources to make connections via the text’s themes of Survival, Nature, and Friendship.
• Plan, design, and create a map of the island that illustrates the setting and identifies key moments in the plot based on novel details.
• Analyze and evaluate theme, motif, and other literary devices to draw conclusions in structured essay responses regarding Karana’s friendships, the island setting, and other topics.