In this activity students will identify the cause and effect of events in the text. At the beginning of the novel, Jeffrey is sent to live with his aunt and uncle who do not get along. He is so disturbed by this, that during a school play, he stands on the stage yelling, “TALK!” and then runs away.
Another cause and effect relationship begins when Mars Bar and his friends surround Maniac, ready to beat him up. Amanda Beale steps in, rescues him and takes him to her house. Shortly after his rescue, Maniac realizes the trouble he is causing the Beales when “FISHBELLY” is sprayed on their house. He doesn’t want to be a burden on the family, so he runs away to the West End.
The text structure of Maniac Magee is cause and effect; therefore an entire cause and effect chain can be created to show how the story progresses.
Note: teachers may want to teach students how to use a T-Chart before assigning this activity.
(These instructions are completely customizable. After clicking "Copy Activity", update the instructions on the Edit Tab of the assignment.)
Student Instructions
Create a storyboard that shows cause and effect relationships in Maniac Magee. Each cause and effect pair will be shown in the same row.
Teachers should be clear on the learning objectives of this activity. They should identify what they will be teaching the students and what kind of response they will expect from the students.
Teachers can give simple introductions to students without using any complicated language. They can tell them why cause and effect is used and its importance in the storyline. Teachers can also give real-life examples to help students get more familiar with the concept.
Teachers can organize activities where students can perform any play including different characters. Throughout the play, students will be observing the consequences of their actions.
After the play, teachers can ask the students to carry out a discussion regarding their characters and observations. Students will then discuss with the entire class how their character faced these consequences and how things could have gone differently.
Teachers can help students guide the discussion and ask them to summarize the key points of this discussion and what they learned.
Maniac's entrance in Two Mills, his meetings with various characters, his attempts to heal the racial barrier, and the ultimate transformation of the village are a few major events with cause and effect relationships in the book. All these incidents later had an impact on his life that became the reason for the ending.
The entrance of Maniac upends the ethnic and social barriers in Two Mills. His presence challenges the residents' preexisting assumptions and causes changes in the way they interact with one another. His struggles also blurred some boundaries between the two communities.
Maniac's relationships with Amanda Beale and Mars Bar Thompson contribute to the community's racial barrier being gradually bridged. The relationships disprove prejudices and aid in bridging racial divides in the eyes of others.
Historical racial divisions and deeply rooted prejudices are to blame for the conflict between the East End and West End populations. Maniac deals with this problem by making friends with people on both sides and defying social norms.