SHEEP, THE ROOSTER, AND THE DUCK
Grades 4 and Up
Matt Phelan
Greenwillow, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-06291-100-1
240 pp.
Summary
Diplomat and inventor Benjamin Franklin, visiting France, relies on his young butler, ten-year-old Emile, to handle his household. After discovering an unlikely spy in the house, Emile is swept up in a swashbuckling cross-country adventure. Allied with the legendary Sheep, Rooster, and Duck, veterans of the Montgolfiers’ first hot-air balloon flight, and daring Aeronaut Sophie, Emile reluctantly joins the fight to keep Benjamin’s inventions from falling into dangerous hands. Graphic novel fans will adore this perilous (and hilarious) romp through 18th-century France.
Curriculum Connections
History
Who was Benjamin Franklin and what brought him to Paris?
Learn about Franklin’s time in France, and research the signing of the Treaty of Paris in 1783, which marked the end of America’s Revolutionary War.
From the History Channel, see Benjamin Franklin.
From PBS, see Ken Burns’s An American Celebrity in France.
Did Marie Antoinette really pretend to be a peasant?
Perhaps not, but here's a tour of the hamlet she created in historic Trianon at Versailles:
While most of the characters in this story are recognizable or easily researched historical figures, Sophie is less so! Could she perhaps be inspired by Aeronaut Sophie Blanchard?
See The Woman Who Rose High in the Early Days of Hot Air Ballooning.
Learn more about Sophie’s daring adventures in this Smithsonian article.
Science
Benjamin Franklin was credited with a great many inventions in his lifetime- some of them still widely used today, including the lightning rod, bifocal glasses, and even swim fins!
The musical instrument mentioned in Matt Phelan’s work was called the glass armonica.
From PBS, see Benjamin Franklin Invents the Glass Armonica.
Listen to Mozart’s Adagio for Glass Armonica.
Now, using glasses of different shapes and sizes, try your own hand at making music! But why does it work?
Learn about the physics behind the tones created with the Sci Guys: Physics of Sound: Singing Wine Glasses.
Who were the Montgolfier brothers?
See Joseph-Michel and Jacques-Etienne Montgolfier.
Learn about the science of hot air balloons, and demonstrate how heat rises with this balloon science experiment.
Language Arts/Creative Writing
Phelan’s book is a work of historical fiction. He researched the time period and used real historic characters, though the story itself is fictional and might stretch a few truths…
Research the history of other famous animals. Examples include:
What historic moments have these animals lived through? Write a short, adventurous story from an animal’s perspective!
Discussion Questions
When asked “what use is a balloon?” Franklin replies, “You might ask ‘What is the use of a baby?’ Babies. Balloons. All is potential.”
What does Franklin mean by this statement?
When do Emile and Sophie start to realize their own potential?
The characters in The Sheep, the Rooster, and the Duck are all based on real people (and animals!). Which character did you find the most intriguing?
Which character did you connect most with and why?
Can you identify a character or part of the book that inspired you to learn more about either a time, place, or person in history?
Benjamin Franklin is sometimes referred to as “the first rock star” because he was already an international celebrity when he visited France. Not everyone was taken with Franklin however. King Louis XVI was said to have gifted Madame Deneuve with a chamber pot with Franklin’s face at the bottom of it! What modern figure would you compare to Benjamin Franklin and why?
All of the characters in this story bring different talents and skills to the table. Sophie is a daredevil and incredible pilot. Emile is organized and a talented artist. Pierre, the courageous rooster, is skilled with a sword. Think about your own strengths. Talk about a time you have used a personal strength, talent, or skill to help a team, or work towards a common goal.
Emile was a reluctant adventurer. Now that crisis has been averted, what do you think his next chapter looks like? Will he create drafts for Montgolfier’s creations? Accompany the Sheep, Rooster, and Duck to the moon? Polish every end table in the Passy house to a high shine?
Author Online
Matt Phelan is an author/illustrator of picture books, middle-grade novels, and graphic novels for young readers. See him create scenes from The Sheep, the Rooster, and the Duck on YouTube.
Companion Books
Adventures of a South Pole Pig
Chris Kurtz (Clarion, 2013)
Flora is determined to become a sled pig – so she heads out on a harrowing voyage to Antarctica.
Dungeon Critters
Natalie Reiss (First Second, 2020)
The Dungeon Critters, a squad of animal companions, head out on a wild adventure investigating a sinister botanical conspiracy.
Mesmerized
Mara Rockliff (Candlewick, 2015)
A beautifully designed account of how Ben Franklin, armed with the scientific method, solves the secret of the mysterious Dr. Mesmer’s tricks.
Worst Class Trip Ever
Dave Barry (Little, Brown, 2015)
The eighth grade is on a peaceful class trip to Washington, D.C. – until Wyatt’s best friend is kidnapped and Wyatt and his best girl end up dealing with international terrorists. A thriller with a lot of slapstick humor.
Ben and Me
Robert Lawson (Little, Brown, 1988)
The astonishing life of Ben Franklin as told by his good mouse Amos – who, it turns out, was the source of all Ben’s best ideas.
First Cat in Space Ate Pizza
Mac Barnett (Katherine Tegen Books, 2022)
Rats are eating the Moon! So off goes the First Cat in Space, accompanied by the Moon Queen and a toenail-clipping robot, to save the world.
Once Upon a Tim
Stuart Gibbs (Simon & Schuster, 2022)
Tim is a peasant with big dreams – and he sees his chance when Princess Grace is abducted by the evil Stinx.