Gregor the Overlander

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.

“Peace Hangs by a Thread”

In this activity, students will work in groups to conduct research and create their own anthropomorphic societies, membership in which they will assume to respond to scenarios of inter-group conflict. This activity will culminate in a final reflection in which students examine their created societies’ dynamics, connecting to the novel’s themes on Strength in Differences and Peace.

In the Underland, humans live side-by-side with giant bats, cockroaches, spiders, and rats. Each society has their own skills, rituals, beliefs, values, and manners of speech. The interactions among these societies are central to Gregor the Overlander, as conflict brews when the rats and the humans clash and compete for power, forcing the other societies to respond by allying with one or the other. Fueling these relations are the hostilities characters like Henry may have towards particular species, but in the end, Gregor learns that equality and cooperation are essential to avoid the devastation violence and war bring.

Work in groups to develop your own societies and analyze the realities of conflict, resolution, and cooperation—identifying connections to the novel’s expressed themes.  

Part A

Work together in small groups to create your own Underland. Where is your secret world? Is it underground, like the Underland in the novel? Perhaps it’s in the sky instead! When creating your Underland, you may wish to consider the following questions:

• Where is the entrance (or entrances) to your world?
• How does one travel to and from our world to yours?
• What is the environment of your world like?
• What kinds of food does your world have?
• What kinds of plants are there?
• Is there a government or ruling power in your world?
• What is your land called?

Part B

After you and your group have built your world together, you will divide up to individually create the societies that will live in your world. Just like in the novel, you will model your society on a species of animal. Each partner should select a different species.

• First research your species’ descriptive biological data. What kind of animal are they? What is their habitat like? What kind of food do they eat? How do they defend themselves from threats? What strengths and weaknesses do they have?
• Now, research and consider your animal metaphorically. What kinds of traits are associated with your animal? For example, in the novel, cockroaches, rats, and spiders all have negative connotations—cockroaches are usually associated with uncleanliness, rats with disease, and spiders with manipulation. What kinds of traits are associated with your animal? Are they usually seen positively or negatively by others?
• Finally, imagine what your species’ society might look like day-to-day. What is their way of life like? What do they value? How do they respond to conflict—passively, aggressively, assertively? Are they friendly, hostile, or do they prefer to keep to themselves? What is their philosophy on ideas like conflict and peace?

Part C

Reconvene as a group and present your societies to each other. Now, consider how the needs of the different societies may conflict with each other, and decide how to resolve those issues.

• Respond to one or more of the following scenarios:
• Pick one society to be in a power struggle with your world’s government. How do the other societies respond to this situation? What alliances or rivalries form? How does this drive conflict between the different societies? What impacts do each society’s decisions and actions have on the others?
• Pick 1-2 societies who are engaged in a territory dispute with one another. Why are they fighting? How does this affect the rest of the societies?
• Consider the different kinds of species you have represented in your land. How do they interact with each other? Are there any societies who might prey on the others? How do the societies perceive each other? How might their perceptions of one another drive conflict between them? How could you keep them from fighting while still meeting each society’s needs?
• Consider the resources your species might need to survive, including resources for food, shelter, and health. Choose 1-2 resources that have become suddenly scarce in your land. How does this impact the different societies? How do they react in the face of this threat to their survival? Do they compete with each other for resources, or band together to help one another survive?
• What philosophical differences exist between your societies? How do the other societies react to differences in belief systems or ways of life? If two of the societies were warring against each other, each with a deeply hostile view of the other, like the humans and the rats in the novel, how would this affect the other societies?

Part D

Finally, you and your partner(s) will collaborate on a final reflection that presents the conflict and resolution of your societies.

• Tell the story of the conflict and its factors. Who was involved? What were the points of contention? How did each society respond? How was the conflict finally resolved?
• Analyze your own reactions. When it came down to resolving the conflict, were you predisposed to work in favor of cooperation, or did you want to protect your own interests? In your reflection, connect your group’s scenario with the events from the novel and analyze their relationship to Strength in Differences and the reality of wars and attaining peace.
• You may present your reflection as a collaborative essay, a written story or ballad, a dramatic scene, a short film, a speech or lecture, or as a PowerPoint or other visual aid like a diorama. Be sure that the full story and relevant aspects of each society are depicted.

Teaching Suggestion: This activity may also be adapted as a long-term project simultaneous to the reading of the novel. Students may complete Parts A and B during novel reading, focusing on Parts C and D as the culmination of the novel unit after they have completed the novel. Also, to ensure variety among the kind of societies created, teachers can establish additional requirements that each member of the group have a particular kind of species (e.g., one predatory, one prey; one herbivorous, one carnivorous; one amphibious, one reptilian, one avian, etc.). The scenarios to which the students respond can be adapted at the teacher’s discretion and may even be altered to draw connections to other topics the students are learning about in subjects like history or social studies.

Differentiation Suggestion: If an additional challenge is desired for advanced learners, the worldbuilding portion of this activity can be adapted to produce a world inspired by research on a historical society. Collins takes inspiration for her Underland from classical Greek and Roman societies, for example. To add an extra dimension to this activity, students may be asked to research an assigned or chosen historical society and then imagine that society in a science-fiction or fantasy world of their making. They may also be required to research real-life historical conflicts or wars associated with their given society to inspire some of the scenarios they will respond to when they construct their own societies.

For students who would benefit from a shorter, more focused assignment, teachers may consider omitting or pre-completing some parts of this activity. For example, students may complete only Parts B and C and then participate in a guided discussion for reflection, or students may be assigned particular animal species with a few specifically selected traits or areas for conflict, which they will then use to respond to a hypothetical situation or conflict. Parts A, B, and C can all be used as separate activities; Part D can be appended to any of them for a closure component.