ROZZUM unit 7134, or Roz for short, is a newly manufactured, state of the art robot who becomes stranded on an island when the cargo ship carrying her and hundreds of others like her sinks during a hurricane. All of the other robots onboard are destroyed, and Roz is the only one left. She is activated by a group of otters, and begins exploring her new surroundings. Roz is not used to being free, and realizes that she has to learn new methods of survival in this new place. The animals on the island are confused and frightened by the wild robot Roz, calling her a monster. Roz learns how to camouflage herself and begins observing the animals, learning from them and slowly adapting to the ways of the island. Eventually, Roz learns how to speak their language. One day, Roz witnesses a terrible sight: a rock slide. Roz goes to the site and finds a single goose egg, the lone survivor after the others have been killed. Roz decides to save the gosling, and protects it until it hatches. Not knowing how to care for a baby goose, Roz seeks out the help of the others, and an older goose named Loudwing encourages her to name the baby and advises her on how to take care of it. With that, Roz is now the adopted mother of baby Brightbill.
Now that she is caring for Brightbill, the other animals trust her more and are more willing to help her adapt to her new environment. Mr. Beaver builds a lodge for her and Brightbill, and a fawn named Tawny shows her how to build a beautiful garden where others will want to visit. As the garden flourishes, so does Roz’s relationships with the other animals. Meanwhile, Brightbill meets a talkative squirrel named Chitchat, and the two become instant best friends. As the days get shorter and the cold weather nears, Roz realizes that Brightbill has matured and must migrate with the other geese for the winter. Brightbill is sad to leave his mother, but Roz is strong and knows that they will see each other again very soon, although she is also sad and does not know what to do now that she is alone once again.
As Roz adapts to being alone, she spends a lot of time doing nothing inside of the lodge. When she wakes from a long rest to find that the harsh weather has made her home cave in, she sets to work to rebuild it. As she is rebuilding, she notices that several animals have frozen due to the unusually harsh winter, and decides she must offer her warm space to those in need. She and the other animals build many new lodges so that they can all stay warm, and manage to survive the cold. The animals delight in the power of fire, and Roz delights in the fact that she could help others. When spring arrives and Brightbill returns home, he tells Roz of his adventures. Brightbill became the leader of the flock during difficult times, and he even saw the factory in which Roz was made during a detour on their trip.
Roz wild robot decides to throw a party for her new friends to thank them for making her feel at home as a “wild” robot. The large bonfire attracts an airship filled with RECOS, or combat robots, who have come in search of the missing robots from the storm. The animals all work together to help Roz escape the RECOS, and all of the RECOS are destroyed. However, Roz is badly broken and has lost her limbs; she is now just a torso and a head. Roz knows that more combat robots will come for her, and fears for the safety of her friends. She tells them that she must go with the airship now, so that she can get the repairs that she needs. The animals are saddened, but realize that Roz is right, and that she must go. The friends help Roz onto the ship as she promises to return when she is able. As her new family watches Roz’s ship fly away, they hope with all their hearts that she will come back to them.
The Wild Robot is a wonderful book about love, friendship, family, and courage. Roz is thrust into a new way of life with absolutely no idea how to survive in this strange world. She survives, thrives, and changes the island for the better, only to be taken away again! To find out what happens to Roz the wild robot, students will enjoy reading the next book, The Wild Robot Escapes, and following Roz on another wild adventure! What will happen to Roz next? Will she ever return to the island and her old friends?
Storyboard That’s The Wild Robot lesson plans include vocabulary, a character map, a plot diagram for students to map out important events of The Wild Robot plot, a movie poster, and exploring The Wild Robot themes. Students will delight in creating storyboards using our very own Roz character and the adorable animals that our artists have created. An additional activity could be to have students complete The Wild Robot chapter summaries for each chapter to dig deeper into the plot of the book. Students could also create a The Wild Robot study guide or a The Wild Robot novel study for a classmate!
These questions may be used during reading, or upon completion of the novel. While it is best to get students discussing what they’ve read, these questions can also be answered individually in a reader’s notebook. It is always such a joy to hear the different opinions that students have, even though they are reading the same novel!
Storyboard That is an excellent tool for students to create fun and engaging projects as a culminating activity after finishing a novel. In addition to our premade activities, here are some ideas that teachers can customize and assign to students to spark creativity in individual students, pairs, or small groups for a final project. Several of these ideas include Storyboard That templates that can be printed out or copied into your teacher dashboard and assigned digitally. All final projects can be printed out, presented as a slide show, or, for an extra challenge, as an animated GIF!
Storyboard That is the perfect tool for novel lesson plans and activities because it's so easy to use and extremely versatile. With Storyboard That, you can create a wide variety of storyboards such as the story from the main character's perspective, or any other character's point of view.
You can also use Storyboard That to create a summary of the book, a movie poster, or analyze themes and events. Plus, our printable worksheets make it easy to take the fun offline.
Storyboarding is an incredibly powerful tool for educators because it helps students process and understand the information in a deep, meaningful way. When students storyboard, they are actively engaged in the learning process and can make connections between the text and their own lives.
Storyboards also promote higher-level thinking by encouraging students to synthesize information and think critically about what they have read. Finally, storyboards are a great way to assess student understanding because they provide a visual representation of student learning.
Since the characters are not human but take on human characteristics, The Wild Robot is considered to be in the fantasy genre. However, it could also be considered science fiction, since it centers around a machine who is from another planet.
, Roz, the main character, is a robot who was stranded on an island when her carrier ship sank. Her sophisticated software makes her smart and resourceful enough to survive among the animals on the island, and eventually she develops relationships and feelings.
SPOILER ALERT!! At the end of the book, Roz is badly damaged and is brought back to the factory where she was originally made. She says goodbye to her friends, promising to return soon.
Yes, there is another book after The Wild Robot! Check out what happens to Roz in Peter Brown’s The Wild Robot Escapes!
