Use this activity to engage all types of learners, while requiring that they refer to and incorporate details from the text over the course of the activity.

“Leave a Good Trail Behind You”

In this activity, students will write a letter to Georgina to convey Mookie’s lesson of leaving a good trail behind you.

Georgina periodically adds to her how-to-steal-a-dog guide throughout the novel. Mookie gently reprimands Georgina, instructing her to leave a good trail behind her. Reflect on Mookie’s words and behaviors, then write a letter to Georgina about how to leave a good trail behind you.

In the letter, create three paragraphs describing the choices Georgina could have made, the decisions she might make in the future, and the characters in the novel who leave a good trail behind them. Consider the points below as you draft your letter:

• What perspective should your letter be from? A friend? A family member?
• What small steps could Georgina take each day to “leave a good trail” behind her?
• What choices did Georgina make in the novel? What could she have done differently?
• What choices might Georgina make after the novel’s conclusion? Why?
• Which characters, other than Mookie, leave a good trail behind them?

Include an appropriate salutation and sign off, depending on the perspective you are writing from, then share your letter with peers.