A Home NamedWALTER
An Educator's Guide for
A Home Named Walter
written by Chelsea Lin Wallace
illustrated by Ginnie Hsu

ABOUT THE BOOK:
A home named Walter learns how to heal his broken heart after a family he loves moves
away in this poignant picture book about loss and renewal.
Walter was a happy home.
He loved the bustle and warmth of the family that lived with him. But when they move
away, his feelings are hurt. He grows cold and quiet and only wants to be left alone.
So when a little girl and her mama move in, Walter is determined to get them out! But inhis struggle to do so, Walter may just feel livable again and change how he feels.
Chelsea Lin Wallace has written a truly poignant story. With its classic sensibility, pairedwith Ginnie Hsu’s warm and lush illustrations, A Home Named Walter is a special story
that will resonate with many readers for years to come.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Chelsea Lin Wallace is an author and a poet with aMaster’s in Education. As a former elementary school
educator, she loves teaching creative writing tochildren. As a little girl, Chelsea moved around a lot,
but felt a unique connection to every home. She now
lives happily in Los Angeles, California with her
husband, daughter, and dog.

ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR:
Ginnie Hsu is an illustrator, designer, animator, maker and educator living
in upstate NY where she teaches illustration at the University of Syracuse.
Her love for drawing began in her childhood in Taiwan, and her work isoften inspired by everyday life, nature, human living, travel and old
artifacts she randomly finds. She loves mixing new and traditional media
to create magic for all. Her illustrated books include A Home Named Walterand Lady Bird Johnson, That's Who! and her publishing clients include
Quarto, Old Dungate Press, Henry Holt, and Feiwel and Friends atMacmillan.
About this resource:

All of the following activities are designed for students in Kindergarten-Third Grade. They can be adapted anddifferentiated for other grade levels and student needs. Common Core Standards and Next Generation Science
Standards connections are listed below each section.
Educators’ Guide created by Kari Allen. Kari is a certified elementary school educator and author.
Visit her website kariallenwrites.com for more information.

LITERACY AND DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:- At one point Walter is described as “A cold, quiet, empty house, growing weeds all around.” Use thissentence to talk about adjectives and how they describe objects. Have the students try writing theirown descriptive sentences either about Walter (maybe at the end of the book to see how he changed)
or of their own home or of their school.
Extension: If you wrote about the school, put it together into a communal piece of writing. Maybe try
turning it into a poem.
- Introduce the idea of personification. What evidence of personification can you find in A Home Named
Walter?
- Discuss what makes a home? Can you have places that feel like a home that are not the actual place
you live? Prompt: Describe a place that feels like a home to you. Why does it feel that way? (Seeprintable prompt.)- What would you name your home and why?
- Walter is very angry at the beginning of the book. How do we know how Walter was feeling? Write orshare about a time you were angry. (See printable prompt.)- Little Girl talks to her Papa but he is not in the story. Discuss and infer why do you think Papa isn’t
there?
- Discuss who the narrator for this story is. Through whose perspective is the story told? Rewrite thestory from a different perspective. For example: the mom, the family that left, a neighbor of Walter’s.
CONNECTIONS TO COMMON CORE STANDARDS:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.1
With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about key details in a text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.3
With prompting and support, identify characters, settings, and major events in a story.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.7
With prompting and support, describe the relationship between illustrations and the story in which they appear (e.g.,what moment in a story an illustration depicts).
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.10
Actively engage in group reading activities with purpose and understanding.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.4
Identify words and phrases in stories or poems that suggest feelings or appeal to the senses.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.6
Identify who is telling the story at various points in a text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.7
Use illustrations and details in a story to describe its characters, setting, or events.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.3
Describe how characters in a story respond to major events and challenges.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.7
Use information gained from the illustrations and words in a print or digital text to demonstrate understanding of its
characters, setting, or plot.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.K.8
With guidance and support from adults, recall information from experiences or gather information from provided
sources to answer a question.

POETRY- Most of the book is told through Walter’s perspective. Use the poem drawing sheet to have students
draw a picture of their own home and name it. Then use the poem template to create A Home Named________ poems by taking on the perspective of their homes. (See printable templates.)

MATH-Use measurement to explore a space or a home. Students can use non-standard or standard
measurement tools.
Can you find the perimeter of the space?
Can you notice any patterns in the measurements you take for certain rooms or spaces?
Can you make graphs or make an infographic to show the different measurements your spaces
have?
- Walk through your own home or school. How many windows can you count? How many doors? Howmany pictures? Use tally marks to keep track. (See printable recording sheets)

CONNECTIONS TO COMMON CORE STANDARDS:

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.1.MD.A.2
Express the length of an object as a whole number of length units, by laying multiple copies of a shorter object (thelength unit) end to end; understand that the length measurement of an object is the number of same-size length units
that span it with no gaps or overlaps
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.2.MD.A.2
Measure the length of an object twice, using length units of different lengths for the two measurements; describe how
the two measurements relate to the size of the unit chosen.
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.CC.B.4
Understand the relationship between numbers and quantities; connect counting to cardinality.
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.CC.B.5
Count to answer "how many?" questions about as many as 20 things arranged in a line, a rectangular array, or a circle,
or as many as 10 things in a scattered configuration; given a number from 1-20, count out that many objects.

STEAM (SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, ART and MATH)- Design and build a house out of found/recycled materials. Have students draw, design and plan out
their house before starting. Can the house they are building solve a need or a problem? (Optional
extension: Have an architect or someone who works in construction visit with the group to answer
questions.)
Extension: Put the homes together to make a town. Have students design and build other buildings.
Use the town to introduce mapping skills. Have students draw a map of their town.
NGSS STANDARDS CONNECTIONS:
K-2-ETS1-2 Engineering Design
Develop a simple sketch, drawing, or physical model to illustrate how the shape of an object helps it
function as needed to solve a given problem.
3-5-ETS1-1 Engineering Design
Define a simple design problem reflecting a need or a want that includes specified criteria for successand constraints on materials, time, or cost.

SOCIAL STUDIES- .Look at photos of homes from around the world and around your country. Compare and contrast
how they are different and the same.
- Interview people whose jobs involve building and designing homes: architects, construction workers,plumbers, electricians, designers.

SEL DISCUSSION:- Sometimes when we are feeling big feelings, we react with big emotions and actions that do notalways make sense to someone else. How is Walter really feeling at the beginning of the book? How
does he show his feelings?
- After Walter’s pipes break, he feels better and is able to move on. Have you ever had an experience
like this? How can we release our sadness or anger in a safe, healthy way?

OTHER:- Draw a picture of where you live. Then add a face to it so that it looks like Walter
does in the illustrations by Ginnie Hsu.
- Listen to the song written by Tara Trudel based on A Home Named Walter.
Discuss how the song connects to the book. The song asks us what makes ahome. What do you think makes a home? Extension: Write your own song about
your home.

VOCABULARY TO EXPLORE FROM THE TEXT OFA HOME NAMED WALTER:
hustletreasured
raggedcrampedsnuffedquirkscoursing
Ideas for Vocabulary:
Clap the syllables for these words.
Define the words. What do they mean?
Look for known phonemic patterns within the words or introduce new ones.

CONNECTIONS TO COMMON CORE STANDARDS:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.4
Ask and answer questions about unknown words in a text.

PICTURE BOOK TEXTS THAT COULD BE USED WITH
A HOME NAMED WALTER:
Building Our House written and illustrated Jonathan Bean
Iggy Peck Architect by Andrea Beaty illustrated by David Roberts
Uma Wimple Charts Her House by Reif Larson and Ben Gibson
The Blue House written and illustrated by Phoebe Wahl
Everything You Need for a Treehouse written by Carter Higgins illustrated by Emily Hughes
The Boy Who Loved Maps written by Kari Allen illustrated by G. Brian KarasName:

Date:

Describe a place that feels likea home to you. What does it
look like? What other details
can you include? Why does it
feel like a home to you?

A Home Named Walter by Chelsea Lin Wallace, illustrated by Ginnie Hsu

Name:Date:

A Home Named Walter by Chelsea Lin Wallace, illustrated by Ginnie Hsu

Name:

Date:

Walter is very angry at the beginningof the book. Write about a time youfelt angry. How did you process yourfeelings?

A Home Named Walter by Chelsea Lin Wallace, illustrated by Ginnie Hsu

Name:Date:

A Home Named Walter by Chelsea Lin Wallace, illustrated by Ginnie Hsu

Name:A HOME NAMED
Draw a picture of your home. Name it!

A Home Named Walter Poem Template
I am(Name of your home)(List who lives in your home)

I have(Describe outside of home)

And I have

(Describe inside of home)I am(Name of your home)

Sometimes I feel

I likeI am

lives in me(Describe how your home feels)(List some things your home likes)(Name of your home)

A Home Named Walter Poem Template
I see
I tasteI hear
I wonderI am(Name of your home)

I feelI think
I am(Name of your home)

NameHow many?
Use tally marks to keep track of how many
objects your home has.
How many doors does
your home have? Show
with tally marks in thebox.

How many chairs does
your home have? Showwith tally marks in thebox.

How many people livein your home ? Show
with tally marks in thebox.

A Home Name Walter by Chelsea Lin Wallace, illustrated by Ginnie Hsu

How many doors does
your home have? Show
with tally marks in thebox.

How many photos or
artwork does your homehave on the walls? Show
with tally marks in thebox.

You pick something totally from your home!
Draw a picture and put
the tally marks in thebox.
Your picture here!

A Home Name Walter by Chelsea Lin Wallace, illustrated by Ginnie Hsu