Teaching Tortilla Flat

Instructions for You

Objective: The goal for this activity is to get a really good grasp of Tortilla Flat. What with all the characters going hither and yon, a map is a great way to get students thinking about where folks are in physical relation to each other, as well as provide an overview of the plot movement. They'll nail down a few people and places and really grab the proverbial Tortilla Flat by the horns.

This activity should be done after reading the entire novel so your students get the broader arc of things. We recommend giving them a heads up at the beginning, so they can jot down notes as they read. If you're already knee-deep in the text, though, no worries—you can have students cluster into brainstorming camps and generate their ideas that way. A little social interaction doesn't hurt, after all.

We're thinking this will take your class about an hour to complete from start to finish. If you prefer to have them brainstorm in class and do the map at home, though, it will certainly free up some time while still squeezing in a little creativity.

Materials Needed: Copies of Tortilla Flat; paper, pens/pencils/markers for mapping

Step 1: While reading the book, have students take notes of who goes where. Does Danny go drinking down at the local bar? Where is that? Where does Tia Ignacia live? Have them write it all down while reading.

If this didn't happen, it's totally okay. Have students go through the book, doing an in depth review and writing down where they think different buildings are. You can pop students into groups for this, scavenging the text together for all the information they'll need for the map.

Wondering what should definitely wind up on the map? We recommend at least the following five things:

• Danny's first house 
• Danny's second house 
• Where Pirate hid his treasure
• The jail
• Mr. Torelli's bar

Definitely push your students beyond these five—these are the bare minimum.

Step 2: Once they have everything nailed down in terms of what should be on their maps, students have to put pen to paper. Here's where they can have a little fun, creating the layout and mapping the relationships between each of the places. That said, they should also use textual evidence—and yes, this means they should include at least one quote to back their decisions up.

Some places won't have much in the way of evidence, but students should still find at least one quote that offers a hint as to why they put things where they are. An example of this sort of reasoning would be to refer to how quickly Pirate seems to move between his treasure and Danny's house.

Step 3: After students have done this, maps should be prettied up and turned in. Before turning them in, have your class double check that they've included at least the five places mentioned in Step 1, along with a quote to support each location.

Instructions for Your Students

Objective: There's a bit of movement going on around Tortilla Flat, and it can be kind of hard to keep track of what with everyone going hither and yon and hither again. This activity will sort this all out, though, as you step into the role of mapmaker and make yourself a handy visual guide for where people and places are in this book.

Now grab your book, haul out your pencil and paper, and get to work.

Step 1: One of two things happen in this step. You'll either read the entire book, taking notes while reading about what goes where. Does Danny go drinking down at the local bar? Where is that? Where does Tia Ignacia live? Taking notes in this step will be your friend.

But if you're coming to this activity later in the reading game, you'll go through and do an in depth review, scavenging along with some pals for all the information you'll need for your map.

Pro tip: Your teacher has five locations they definitely want to see. What do you think those could be? If you're stumped, ask nicely and maybe you'll get a clue.

Step 2: Once you have everything nailed down in terms of what should be on your map, it's time to put pen to paper. Here's where you can have a little fun, creating the layout and mapping the relationships between each of the places. That said, you should also use textual evidence—and yes, this means you have to include at least one quote to back your decisions up.

Some places won't have much in the way of evidence, but you should still find at least one quote that offers a hint as to why you put things where they are. An example of this sort of reasoning would be to refer to how quickly Pirate seems to move between his treasure and Danny's house.

Step 3: Pretty up your map and turn it in. Just make sure to double check that you have at least the five key places your teacher is looking for, as well as one quote for each location.