The Call of the Wild

Throughout the novel, Buck experiences hardship, displacement, and loss, “discovering” much about himself and the natural world along the way. What is the most important thing that Buck learns or achieves in the story? Why is this important?

Teaching Suggestion: You may want to encourage students to try thinking like Buck as they approach this question. Remind students of the “nature faker” controversy and caution them against sentimentalizing a canine character like Buck. At the same time, students should remember that Buck does display emotional awareness throughout the novel, including love and grief. These emotional experiences are crucial to the story and shape the way Buck learns to approach the world around him.

Differentiation Suggestion: If you are asking students to complete this prompt in writing, students who benefit from helpful strategies with written expression might be allowed to turn in such an organizer instead of complete written responses.

Use this activity to engage all types of learners, while requiring that they refer to and incorporate details from the text over the course of the activity.

“Write Like a Dog”

In this activity, students will use creative thinking to write a short story from the perspective of an animal.

In The Call of the Wild (and in other novels too), Jack London tries to get inside the head of an animal.