You could use 3 versions of another fable if you want, but make sure they are different in their themes and plots
Underlined words below are lesson vocabulary words that are emphasized and written on sentence strips for my Reading & Writing word wall. I pull off the words off the wall for each lesson, helping students understand this key 'reading and writing' vocabulary can be generalized across texts and topics. The focus on acquiring and using these words is part of a shift in the Common Core Standards towards building students’ academic vocabulary. My words are color coded ‘pink’ for literature/’blue’ for reading strategies/’orange’ for informational text/'yellow' for writing/’green’ for all other words)
Engage students:
“I have some stories today to read for you. Tell me what you think as I write and read the titles.”
Bring students to a common starting point:
Review concepts:
Model the strategy:
Guided practice:
Independent practice
The emphasis in the Common Core Standards toward the ability to compare and contrast versions of a story (RL.2.9). Fables are a great choice for this because there are usually several versions. I chose this fable because the students are very familiar with it, but enjoy hearing the different versions. They are familiar with the details of the basic story, but the versions vary in theme and some plot details.
These fables are fun to examine for character development (RL.2.2), helping the students learn how to read closely and examine text to verify answers to questions. The characters change and develop in different ways in these versions and the students can understand the humor of the newer versions.
Discussion and reflection:
Encourage students to share their ideas and connections. You can gauge student understanding by listening to their connections. Were they shallow connections (I like the pigs’ houses ) or deeper connections (The plot of this story switched the characters and we saw a different point of view.) Make comments on the kinds of connections that the students made. Also ask them to verify the reasons why they liked or didn’t like the stories.
Scaffolding and Special Education: This lesson could be easily scaffolded up or down, depending on student ability.
For students with academic challenges more prompting will be needed. I did go through the organizer pieces with them to help them fill it out. I also ‘modeled out loud’ my thinking when I read – “I can make a connection to those beautiful flowers because I went to a garden and loved the smell!”. Encourage them to make those deeper connections, even if you have to lead them through the process.
This is a great lesson for students with more academic ability. I would expect them to be able to write themes with higher level vocabulary (‘do a favor for a friend’ vs ‘help your friend’) and to create connections that are deeper (‘he called the cops when he saw the wolf like the boy who cried wolf called the townspeople')