WebQuest for Bronx Masquerade-Nikki Grimes

Nikki Grimes, author, poet, lecturer and educator, was born in Harlem, New York, and raised amongst the endless boroughs of New York City as a child of the foster care system.  Grimes began composing at the young age of six and has been writing ever since.  Despite her troubled childhood marked by a dysfunctional and badly broken home, Grimes' stories are refreshingly hopeful and optimistic.  Grimes writes primarily about young African American characters with whom young adults can identify, although readers of all ages are able to see bits of themselves in her highly diverse characters.  In order to give life and meaning to her characters, Grimes has been known to draw upon her own childhood experiences.

Grimes has written an abundance of works, which have included several award winners.  Four of her Young Adult books are recipients of the Coretta Scott King Award including, Talking About Bessie, Meet Danitra Brown, Jazmin's Notebook, and Bronx Masquerade.  Grimes has also written some poetry collections, which include A Pocketful of Poems, and Danitra Brown Leaves Town.  However, her list of accomplishments does not end there.  Grimes has also written Adult Fiction, namely, Portrait of Mary.  These are just a few out of the endless list of brilliant works created by Grimes.                                                                                                       

Steps in WebQuest

1.  Read the book summary.

2.  Search the hot sites and consider the story themes, events and characters.

3.  Answer the questions in the quiz by creating a word document.

4.  Visit the rubric to see the grading schedule.

Email the authors, Stephanie Rips and Tracy McHugh.