Joint Custody by Ada Limón | CommonLit | Paired Texts

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by Ada Limón 2022

We've identified these texts as great options for text pairings based on similar themes, literary devices, topic, or writing style. Supplement your lesson with one or more of these options and challenge students to compare and contrast the texts. To assign a paired text, click on the text to go to its page and click the "Assign Text" button there.

Shel Silverstein

In Shel Silverstein's poem "Underface," a speaker describes the face they show to the world and the one that hides underneath.

Pair “Underface” with “Joint Custody” and ask students to compare the speakers’ experiences. What experience does the speaker share in “Underface”? What experience does the speaker share in “Joint Custody”? When is it okay to share difficult experiences with others, and when is it okay to keep them hidden?

Heidi Stemple

In Heidi Stemple's memoir "Moving Home," she describes making the decision to move home with her family after her father falls ill.

Pair “Moving Home” with “Joint Custody” and ask students to discuss the theme of family. Describe the narrator’s relationship with her family in “Moving Home.” Describe the speaker’s relationship to their family in “Joint Custody.” How do the texts teach readers about different kinds of families?

5th Grade Memoir 780L

Baptiste Paul

In "Each Scar," the speaker reflects on a lesson from their mother about getting hurt.

Pair “Each Scar” with “Joint Custody” and ask students to discuss the related themes of both poems. Why does the speaker try to be thankful for scars in “Each Scar”? Why does the speaker feel thankful for their experience in “Joint Custody”? What messages do the two poems share about difficult experiences?

In "Dead Stars," a speaker explores the connection between humans and the rest of the universe.

Pair “Joint Custody” with “Dead Stars” and have students examine the voice and tone of the poet in both poems. How is the language used by Limón in “Joint Custody” similar to the language she uses in “Dead Stars”? How does the theme in “Joint Custody” differ from the theme in “Dead Stars”?

Our Parents Are Soldiers

In "Our Parents Are Soldiers," a brother and sister describe the experience of having two military parents deployed overseas.

Pair “Joint Custody” with “Our Parents Are Soldiers” and ask students to discuss the theme of family. Describe the speaker’s relationship with her family in “Joint Custody.” Describe Daniel and Isabella Gomez’s relationship with their family in “Our Parents are Soldiers.” What lessons about family do the relationships in both texts support?

5th Grade Non-Fiction - General 860L