Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

1. List three things you think are true about the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Label each “know for sure” or “just a guess.” For each one you labeled “just a guess,” explain briefly why you guess this might be true.

Teaching Suggestion: Students may know very little about the DRC, where Endangered takes place. The structure of this prompt gives students a chance to activate their existing knowledge schemas as they make educated guesses about this country; you might ask students to complete the prompt as best they can and then offer them the resources below and allow them to correct any misunderstandings in their work. If it is appropriate to your classroom, this structure also offers an opportunity to talk about the differences among African countries and cultures and the ways in which the troubles of countries like the DRC are often misrepresented as being typical of the continent as a whole.

• This 3-minute video by BBC News follows the Congo River inland, showing the land and people along the way.