Dicey's Song

Title: Dicey's Song

 

Author: Cynthia Voigt

 

Readability: Grade level Equivalent: 5.2, Lexile Measure: 710L

 

Genre: Realistic Fiction, Dictionaries, Series, Young Adult

 

Theme: Leadership and Responsibility, Extended Families, Siblings, Survival

 

Characters: Dicey, Gram, James, Maybeth, Sammy, Mina, Jeff, Mr. Lingerie, Momma,

 

Awards: 2003 NEWBERY MEDAL WINNER

 

Publication: 1982

 

Publisher: Macmillan Publishing Company

 

ISBN: 0-689-30944-9

 

Summary:  This is the story of a young girl and her family that have to learn to live without their mother.  Dicey's mother is taken to a mental hospital and she and her siblings move in with their grandmother in search of peace and consistency.  Throughout this story Dicey must become responsible, and learn how to care for the ones she loves.

 

Classroom:  This story has many forms of symbolism including the apron, the boat, and the marbles.  Upon completion of reading this story students can write about either of these and what they symbolize within the story.