Book excerpt: Be encouraged to rise above failure and show just what you're made of. The provided Before and After reading activities really help to build student's reading comprehension. Make connections between the novel and well-known Greek myths by identifying the significance of the three old ladies Percy sees knitting. Make predictions about the plot by deciding whether Percy will find out about his parentage. Go back through the novel and make a list of clues that show the author's use of foreshadowing. Put key events from the novel in the order they occurred as Percy learns about his quest. Compare the Greek gods from the novel with their Roman counterparts. Detail some of the ways the gods of Olympus influenced events in the story, and how these influences impacted plot development. Aligned to your State Standards, additional crossword, word search, comprehension quiz and answer key are also included. About the Novel: The Lightning Thief follows the mythical adventures of a young boy with a legendary destiny. Twelve-year-old Percy Jackson is close to being kicked out of another boarding school. But his real concern is the figures from Greek mythology who seem intent on killing him. On a school trip, Percy is attacked by one of his chaperones. He learns this person is really a Fury—a Greek deity of vengeance. With a magic sword tossed to him by his Latin teacher, Percy successfully kills the creature. He soon learns that he is, in fact, a demigod—half human and half Greek god. He makes his way to a summer camp for other demigods. Here he learns of his true parentage and why he struggles so much in school. Things get even stranger for Percy when he is thrust into a quest that can either save the world, or doom him forever.