First
Test: Protector of the Small
by Tamora Pierce
First
Test: Protector of the Small
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FIRST TEST, April 1999
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Web Page Compiled By:Angie West
Jodi Stevens
Valerie Bradshaw
Cheryl Delia
Mike Kahn
The novel, First Test: Protector of the Small is a wonderful coming of age tale. Tamora Pierce, writes a tremendous historical fantasy that takes place in a wildly creative world. It includes monsters known as immortals who the humans have just completed a war with and continue to struggle with. T he story opens with the main character, Kel, being the first girl to take advantage of a law that saids girls can become pages to study to become knights. However, the training master, Lord Wyldon, is not too thrilled that a girl will be studying so places her under a one year probation so that Kel must prove she belongs. None of the boys are subject to this probation. The novel details Kel's first year struggles with her training master, fellow male classmates who do not want a girl among them, and the rigors of learning to become a knight. Kel earns the respect of some of her peers by not backing down from any challenges no matter what they are. Finally, Kel is able to display her true abilities as she leads a group of knights to a group of immortals. There, in a great battle, the humans win with Kel fighting very bravely. At the end, although not thrilled with a girl being in his ranks, Lord Wyldon grants Kel permission to return and continue her studies.
Students of all age will enjoy this imaginitive story. First Test is especially written for young girls who are at a age where they question what they can do with their lives and need to see that they can do anything a boy can. This story is also excellent for young boys who might need to see the same thing. The knight school that Kel attends is extremely similar to military academies in the United States. A student with military aspirations would be very interested in reading this novel. Overall, this book is good for many classrooms. There are many activities teachers can do with it and the story will spart many great classroom discussions.
Tamora Pierce:
Tamora Pierce was born on December 13, 1954. While she was young she moved around a lot. This was during the late 1960's and early 1970's. She spent six years in California around the San Fransico Bay Area. After that, she moved to Pennsylvania.
Tamora began writing in the sixth grade, her father was the driving force behind this. During this time her parents began to fight more and more which caused her to get deeper into her writing. By the time she was in the seventh grade, her parents got a divorce. This was also the time that she discovered fantasy and science fiction. Writing was her passion and with this love she tried to write her own fantasy and science fiction. Instead of writing about traditional male heros, she decided to use female heroines. When she went into the tenth grade, she felt she could not write what she wanted anymore. She decided to put down her pen and set aside the desire of being a writer.
After Tamora graduated high school, she attended the University of Pennsylvania on a full scholarship. She decided to study psychology so she could pursue a career in social work with a hope of working and helping teenagers. During the summer before her junior year, she went back to writing and wrote a short story called Demon Charriot. After she sold the story, she decided to take fiction writing as a course. Her teacher, David Bradley, saw the immense talent that she possessed and talked her into writing her first novel. The novel was called The Song of the Lioness. Tamora's agent told her she should turn the novel in to a series of four books and focus them more towards teenagers. When she did this, Jean Karl from Atheneum agreed to publish the books. Needless to say, she never went back to finish her psychology degree.
Today, Tamora lives in Manhatten with her husband Tim Liebe and their three very loving cats.
These ideas are general and would have to be refined to suit the grade level and the particular students:
Art -- Draw an original picture of a creature that is half animal, half human. Give this creature a name and one characteristic that makes it unusual.
Writing -- Describe a time when you achieved something that no
one else thought that you could, or perhaps discouraged you from trying.
(For example, trying out for a sports team or getting a good grade on a
test or paper.)
-Rewrite a part of the book that you did not like, make changes so
that the book is told the way that you would like it to be.
Compared to other books --Find other books that also had a strong female character. How does this character compare to Kel?
Discussion -- Discuss how other cultures treat women. Questions to ask might be, "Are woman treated as equals?" "Do women have the same rights as the men in the culture?" "What is the dominant role of women in the culture?"
Social Studies -- How did people in the medieval times
live? Discuss things like feudalism and who had all the power.
- How did people become a knight historically? What training
did they go through?
-Research the different Gods and Goddess throughout history.
What did each one stand for? Choose your favorite one and explain
why you chose it.
Other Books By Tamora Pierce
Books Recommended By Tamora Pierce
Students will go to specific websites and find answers to the related questions. Since Kel is the first is the first woman to take advantage of the knights law, students will seek out other women's firsts. Then, students will create a bulletin board on "Women's Firsts" using the information gathered, personal creativity, and any other research found.
What shuttle/mission was her first ride? __________________________________
What team did she win the game for? ________________________________
What team did she defeat? _________________________________
What was the date that she accomplished this feat? __________________________________
What is the Citadel? ____________________________________
