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REM World
To Help You Connect Trumpet Books to Your Curriculum
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REM World
Classroom Activities
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About the Book
In a desperate attempt to lose weight, eleven-year old Arthur Woodbury orders a device that promises weight loss during sleep. The device is a helmet that magically transports Arthur to the world of REM. There, he meets his guide, a comical creature named Morf. As Arthur and Morf travel through REM and meet its many odd and interesting characters, they learn that Nothing is about to take over the universe, unless Arthur can get home and stop it. To this end, Arthur and Morf face the great demon Vyder. The only hope to save REM and mankind, Arthur acts bravely, intelligently, and imaginatively. In the end, he finds his way home, and he discovers that he is not only thinner but also much wiser for his REM experiences.
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Before You Read
You might want to point out that REM is the scientific term for the pattern of human brain activity during deep sleep, when dreams occur. Have students describe how they feel about dreaming. For instance, have students had dreams that they thought were real while the dreams were happening? Have they learned anything about life from the dreams they've had?
Have Students Create Their Own REM World with Story–Starter Ideas and Activities.
REM Travel Brochure
Have students create a travel brochure for a location in REM World that Arthur and Morf did not visit in the novel. Students might:
- Identify an REM name and a kind of creature who lives in this REM location.
- Draw an illustration or an REM map of this location.
- Develop a paragraph or two that describes this REM location and the people that inhabit it.
- Come up with a slogan that would interest REM travelers to visit this location.
Include a list of reasons why this would be a fascinating REM location to visit.
Dream Trackers
Students can write a story about an unusual world and base the story on a real or imagined dream experience. They should:
- Create a name for their dreamworld, just as REM is the name of Arthur's dreamworld.
- Include descriptions that tell about the setting of this dreamworld.
- Develop an incident or conflict that occurs for themselves or another main character who visits this dreamworld.
Dream Interview
Have students imagine that they, like Arthur, have had an amazing experience in a dreamworld. In order to tell what it was like or what happened to them during their visit, have them act as the subject of an interview. They might:
- Write five questions an interviewer would want to know about a person's visit to a dreamworld.
- Write answers to the questions, in which they include vivid descriptions to help the reader envision the dreamworld they have experienced.
REM Dialogue
Students can choose one of the locations that Arthur visited and imagine that they are with him during this visit. They should:
- Develop a dialogue between themselves, Arthur, and another REM World creature that helps make this place vivid and understandable to readers.
- Focus on an unusual characteristic of this part of REM World or the inhabitants there.
- Include concerns about the Nothing and the creature's part in helping Arthur save everyone from the Nothing.
A Demon's Tale
Arthur learns that Vyder was once a good creature, who turned into an demon. Have students write a speech that Vyder gives to the people of REM after Arthur saves the universe. The speech might include:
- The story of how Vyder became a demon in the first place.
- How Vyder feels about what Arthur did to save the universe.
- What Vyder plans to do or become in the future now that Arthur has stopped the Nothing.
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