Lesson Ideas

Before the Board

Use these activities as your class reads Everything on a Waffle in preparation for the bulletin board discussion.

1. In Everything on a Waffle, Primrose Squarp learns a lot about people, both positive and negative. To help students explore what Primrose learns, have them make a chart with three columns.
   • In the left, have them list the main characters Primrose encounters, such as Miss Perfidy, Uncle Jack, Miss Honeycut, and Kate Bowzer.
   • In the second column, ask them to write a three or four adjectives to describe each of these characters.
   • Finally, in the third column, have them summarize what they think Primrose learned from her experiences with each of these people. This exercise will help them respond to bulletin board questions, especially the following:
     • What are some different kinds of people Primrose encounters in the book? What did you find out about people from this novel?
     • What do you think Primrose learns from Miss Bowzer?
     • What do you think Primrose’s life will be like after the end of the book? How has her experience changed her?
2. Each chapter in the book ends with an enticing recipe. Encourage students to experiment in the kitchen (with permission from their parents) and make one of the dishes. Have them report to the class about how it turned out — or better yet, bring some in to share. Then they can recount their cooking results online.
3. Have students think about what questions they would like to ask Polly Horvath, author of Everything on a Waffle. This is their chance!
   • Is there anything they didn’t understand about the book?
   • Would they like to know what inspired her to create any particular event or character?
   • What else would they like to know about the author?

After the Board

After the bulletin board discussion, round out the experience with these activities.

1. Ask students to read the questions and responses on the bulletin board. Ask, "What did you learn or understand about Primrose as a result of the bulletin board that you didn't realize before?"
2. Invite students to summarize what they learned about Polly Horvath. Ask, "What do you think makes her write funny yet thought-provoking novels like Everything on a Waffle?"
3. Drawing ideas from the bulletin board questions, invite students to write another chapter of the book, exploring what Primrose's life is like after her parents return.

Free Resources

Invite your students to read kid reviews of Everything on a Waffle. Afterwards, they can share their thoughts on the book.